Two months later, a winning lottery ticket

May 23, 2013, 9:54 am (57 comments)

North Carolina Lottery

For weeks, Dipak Patel and his wife, Hetal, owners of the Pinebuff Mini Mart reminded their customers to check their lottery tickets because the store had sold a winning Carolina Cash 5 ticket worth $236,455 in March.

If only Ed Studebaker had listened.

Studebaker, a West End resident who works as a manufacturing engineer in Pinebluff and is a regular customer at the Mini Mart, had the winning lottery ticket. He just didn't know it.

The ticket sat in his home for nearly two months before he realized he'd won.

"The clerk at the store kept saying that someone had won a Cash 5 jackpot and that I should check my tickets," Studebaker said in a release from the North Carolina Education Lottery. "I finally asked my daughter to check my tickets for me on Sunday. She called me at work the next day and told me I had won.

"I thought she was messing with me, but my wife confirmed it."

Studebaker, a regular Carolina Cash 5 player, filled out his winning ticket with the birthdays of his family members. He matched all five numbers, 1, 3, 4, 25, 27.

Studebaker received a check worth $160,790 after state and federal taxes were withheld. He said he plans to use a portion of his winnings to purchase a fuel efficient car, take a cruise and pay bills.

"I'm so happy," Studebaker said as he received his winnings. "I have the money in hand. It's starting to sink in. It's real."

Dipak Patel said Studebaker was back in the store last week on behalf of his co-workers. They wanted to test his luck with the big Powerball jackpot, but lightning didn't strike twice.

"I expect they will be back to buy more tickets," Patel said Friday morning.

The Patels have owned the Mini Mart on Walnut Street in Pinebluff for 13 years. Studebaker's winning ticket was the largest winning amount sold by the store, Patel said. In 2009 the store sold a winning Power Ball ticket worth $10,000.

Dipak Patel said selling a winning ticket is a good boost for business.

"It's a good advertisement for our store," Patel said.

The Pilot

Comments

CLETU$

Unbelievable,an honest Patel.Will wonders never cease?

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by CLETU$ on May 23, 2013

Unbelievable,an honest Patel.Will wonders never cease?

Unbelievable that the guy wanted to advertise his store and get the commission check?

Erzulieredeyes's avatarErzulieredeyes

Unbelievable that the Patels didn't steal their customers ticket and cash it in themselves after reading all the news stories and articles I read here on LP.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Erzulieredeyes on May 23, 2013

Unbelievable that the Patels didn't steal their customers ticket and cash it in themselves after reading all the news stories and articles I read here on LP.

I think those kind of clerks/owners are the exception NOT the rule.

CLETU$

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on May 23, 2013

I think those kind of clerks/owners are the exception NOT the rule.

You could have fooled me.The Patels are a well known clan of crooks and thieves.One was busted for burning down his grocery store in Hamilton,Illinois.a couple of years ago and I don't know how many clerks named Patel that I have read about stealing lottery winnings from the real owners.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by CLETU$ on May 23, 2013

You could have fooled me.The Patels are a well known clan of crooks and thieves.One was busted for burning down his grocery store in Hamilton,Illinois.a couple of years ago and I don't know how many clerks named Patel that I have read about stealing lottery winnings from the real owners.

I was talking about in general across the country. Besides that's why we have laws and they DO eventually get busted. In AZ they don't puul that crap much because we have a Sheriff that is happy to cuff em.

Erzulieredeyes's avatarErzulieredeyes

The Patels are a chain of thieves and the only reason they may be the exception is because they didn't get a hold of the real owners ticket.

RedStang's avatarRedStang

Quote: Originally posted by CLETU$ on May 23, 2013

Unbelievable,an honest Patel.Will wonders never cease?

They could be Born Again Patels.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Erzulieredeyes on May 23, 2013

The Patels are a chain of thieves and the only reason they may be the exception is because they didn't get a hold of the real owners ticket.

If people were more responsible with the handling of their tickets the crooked clerks would never get away with it.

rdgrnr's avatarrdgrnr

I can't speak for all of them but I know some Patels in a store in the area and they seem like very nice people.

The woman even makes googly eyes at me when her husband's not around.

Erzulieredeyes's avatarErzulieredeyes

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on May 23, 2013

If people were more responsible with the handling of their tickets the crooked clerks would never get away with it.

If clerks/Patels were more responsible we wouldn't have these issues and real winners would NOT be getting ripped off.

No one expects the clerk behind the counter to commit lottery fraud

When I walk into a store owned by a Patel to check my tickets I turn around and walk out without buying anything and don't care if they know it. The Patels should be watched very carefully.
CLETU$

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on May 23, 2013

I was talking about in general across the country. Besides that's why we have laws and they DO eventually get busted. In AZ they don't puul that crap much because we have a Sheriff that is happy to cuff em.

I'm talking about in general,across the country,too.They don't care about laws and your sheriff or my sheriff or any sheriff for that matter.When they get caught they play ignorant of the law and the english language.Then some bleeding heart liberal judge gives them their walking papers because they don't understand what they did was against the law.When foriegners break our laws they should be imprisoned and then deported,not excused!

hsg2000

They are greedy for money

sully16's avatarsully16

Quote: Originally posted by rdgrnr on May 23, 2013

I can't speak for all of them but I know some Patels in a store in the area and they seem like very nice people.

The woman even makes googly eyes at me when her husband's not around.

LOL, Congrats to the lucky winner.

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