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3.18.2015

The guy who lost his winning million dollar lottery ticket

Mechanic didn't realize he had won until he saw himself on the news.



Damn. Meet the guy who lost a million bucks. In Southern California, a man who bought a winning lottery ticket was unable to claim his $1 million Powerball prize because he couldn't find the friggin' ticket.

Man Who Says He Couldn't Find His Winning $1M Powerball Ticket Tells His Story

Hung Nguyen, a mechanic at an El Monte repair shop, bought the ticket six months ago. His winning ticket, worth $1,098,624, matched all the numbers except the Powerball number. However, he didn't realize he had won until months after the drawing, when he returned from a trip to Vietnam and saw himself on the news.




When no one stepped forward to claim the prize, lottery officials released the supermarket surveillance video to the public. But Nguyen couldn't collect his million dollar winnings because he couldn't find his ticket.

When no one came forward to claim the prize, California Lottery officials released surveillance video.

Nguyen's boss saw him on the news and told him he had won.

"The owner mentioned it to him and he thought that the owner was joking around with him," a translator for Nguyen said.

But the father of a 5-month-old baby and a mechanic in South El Monte couldn't claim his $1,098,624 prize because he lost the ticket. The money was transferred to public schools in California.

According to Powerball regulations, a prize can only be claimed if the winner presents the actual winning ticket. Bummer. I'm guessing Mr. Nguyen tore up his entire house looking for that damn thing. Better luck next time.

More here: Man who lost $1 million Powerball ticket speaks out