Lottery player heard of unclaimed $1 million Powerball win. Then she checked NC ticket

Leslie Husted was watching the news recently when she heard about an unclaimed $1 million Powerball prize in her town.

“I was sitting there watching and I just got this funny feeling that it could be us,” Husted told officials, according to a March 1 North Carolina Education Lottery news release. “When they said, ‘Nobody has come forward yet,’ I started shaking.”

Husted, who lives in Benson, called her husband and told him “I think we might have won a million dollars,” she told officials. Her husband told her to check their numbers.

“I went to go check the ticket and then I just started screaming,” Husted said.

She was right: Her ticket was the unclaimed winner in the Feb. 20 drawing.

The win came as an early birthday present for Husted, who turned 58 the day after discovering her prize, according to officials.

“I won’t forget this birthday that’s for sure,” Husted said.

After taxes, Husted took home $712,501, which she plans to save for retirement, officials said. She bought her winning $2 ticket from a Murphy Express on N.C. 42 West in Garner, North Carolina — less than 10 miles outside of Raleigh.

If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.

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