Somebody who bought a Texas Lotto ticket in an Angleton convenience store is worth $18 million, but neither the couple who sold the winning ticket nor the state lottery commission knows who it is.
The winner has 180 days after Saturday's drawing to come forward to claim the jackpot, said lottery spokesman Robert Elrod. It's not uncommon for a winner to take several weeks to come to Austin to claim the prize, he said.
"We would like to know who it is," said Shuju Feng, who operates the Handi Plus gas station and convenience store with his wife, Xin Lu. "It's very exciting."
The couple bought the store six months ago and only started selling lottery tickets about three months ago, he said.
"We sell up to 500 or 600 lottery tickets a day," Feng said. "People come in here because we have good barbecue and we have a nice, clean store." The aroma of wood-smoked meat drifted out of a back corner of the store, where a stainless steel smoker slowly cooks meat.
The store, at the busy intersection of Texas 288 and Texas 35, is across the street from a large convenience store and gas station that doesn't sell lottery tickets.
"A lot of people come in here for gas because we also sell lottos," Feng said.
The couple will get a 1 percent bonus — about $180,000 — for selling the winning ticket, Elrod said.
They don't plan to take the money and retire, Feng said. "We can pay it on the loan we owe to buy this place," he said, "and even that won't pay it all."
There are other uses for the money. Their 17-year-old daughter wants to go to medical school. They also have a 9-year-old son.
The couple, originally from China, came to the United States 13 years ago.
Elrod said the lottery commission instructs winners to sign the back of their ticket and call a number printed on the back to notify officials. They are urged to seek legal and financial advice before claiming their prize, which must be done in person at the lottery headquarters in Austin.
For all we know, the ticket holder(s) may still not know they won. They may even have lost the ticket. But the TLC (Texas Lottery Commission) should know whether the ticket is marked "Cash Value Option" or "25 Annual Payments". Texas still requires the cash/annuity choice to be made when playing, be it Mega Millions or Lotto Texas.
For all we know, the ticket holder(s) may still not know they won. They may even have lost the ticket. But the TLC (Texas Lottery Commission) should know whether the ticket is marked "Cash Value Option" or "25 Annual Payments". Texas still requires the cash/annuity choice to be made when playing, be it Mega Millions or Lotto Texas.
Maybe someone stole the ticket!