Mom almost tosses North Carolina lottery ticket — then wins big with a second look

A mom scratched off a $5 lottery ticket in North Carolina and was about to toss it in the trash — but she peeked at it one last time.

If she hadn’t, she would have thrown away a $200,000 /winner, she told lottery officials.

“I really was about to throw it away,” Jacqueline Leigh told lottery officials. “But I went back and looked at it again and that’s when I discovered it.”

Leigh bought her lucky Hot 5’s ticket at the Roper Food Mart in Roper, she told lottery officials. Once she realized she won the jackpot prize, she called her family.

“I told my daughter and she said, ‘mom are you for real,’” Leigh told lottery officials with a laugh. “I’ve never won anything like this before. It’s a blessing.”

Leigh took home $142,021 after taxes and plans to pay off her car and some bills, according to lottery officials.

Roper is about 130 miles east 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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