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A lucky man in North Carolina "freaked out" after receiving the surprise of a lifetime in the form of a huge lottery win.
Barry Spellman got a shock when a Monday morning pit stop at his typical convenience store ended with him scoring a huge win, according to a release from the NC Education Lottery. The Wilmington man purchased a $50 scratch-off ticket in the $8 Million Money Maker game from the Han-Dee Hugo's on Carolina Beach Road and landed one of the game's $100,000 prizes.
"I stop at that store every morning to get a coffee and tickets," he said. "I've been going there for years."
Spellman told lottery officials that the win came as quite the surprise.
"I kind of freaked out," he said. "I was shaking."
Spellman claimed his prize at lottery headquarters on Thursday (March 6), taking home an impressive total of $71,764 after all required state and federal taxes. He told lottery officials that he plans to use his new winnings to take a trip to Disney World with his wife as well as pay some bills and invest. As for now, he is still coming to terms with the win.
"I'm still just trying to process it," he said.
According the lottery website, the $8 Million Money Maker game debuted in December with five top prizes of $8 million as well as 10 prizes of $100,000. After Spellman's win, eight $100,000 prizes remain to be claimed as do four of the top prizes.