National

Suspicious email in lottery player’s spam folder turned out to be a huge Michigan win

A woman found an email in her spam folder that said she won in the Michigan lottery’s second chance drawing. She verified it was real.
A woman found an email in her spam folder that said she won in the Michigan lottery’s second chance drawing. She verified it was real. Getty Images/iStockphoto

Unlike many suspicious emails in spam folders, one from the Michigan lottery in a 54-year-old woman’s inbox turned out to be the “surprise of a lifetime,” officials said.

However, she needed to check “three different times to make sure the email was real,” she told Michigan lottery officials in a July 30 news release.

The email said the woman had won a prize in the BIG CA$H Second Chance jackpot drawing July 9, but she didn’t know she had entered.

The Macomb County woman learned she had been earning entries by playing Michigan lottery games online.

Now, she’s the winner of a $207,199 prize.

Players wagering in some of Michigan lottery’s online instant games include a jackpot drawing entry for every $0.50 bet, according to officials.

With her winnings, the woman plans to pay her bills and invest.

“This win is so exciting and couldn’t have come at a better time,” she said in the news release.

BIG CA$H Second Chance jackpot drawings occur monthly.

Macomb County is about a 40-mile drive northeast from Detroit.

Many people can gamble or play games of chance without harm. However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.

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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This story was originally published July 30, 2024 at 11:54 AM with the headline "Suspicious email in lottery player’s spam folder turned out to be a huge Michigan win."

Kate Linderman
mcclatchy-newsroom
Kate Linderman covers national news for McClatchy’s real-time team. She reports on politics and crime and courts news in the Midwest. Kate is a 2023 graduate of DePaul University and is based in Chicago.
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