Man hits $4 million jackpot at NC Food Lion, ending popular scratch-off lottery game
A Mooresville man’s seemingly random choice to stop and buy a scratch-off ticket at a Lake Norman Food Lion landed him a $4 million jackpot and ended the statewide Ruby Red 7s game, North Carolina lottery officials said Wednesday.
Kenneth Stewart paid $20 for the ticket at the Food Lion on River Highway (N.C. 150 West) in Mooresville, officials said. The store is off Interstate 77 Exit 36.
He beat odds of about 1 in 3 million, according to the lottery website.
Because Stewart won the last of the four top $4 million prizes, lottery officials said they’ve now begun to wind down the game that debuted in January.
Stewart claimed his prize at lottery headquarters in Raleigh on Tuesday, officials said.
He had the choice of an annuity of $200,000 a year for 20 years and a $2.4 million lump sum. Stewart chose the lump sum, which, after taxes, netted him $1,698,006, according to a lottery news release..
Stewart did not tell lottery officials what he intends to do with his jackpot. He did not immediately reply to a phone message from The Charlotte Observer on Wednesday.
Ruby Red 7s also offered eight $100,000 prizes when the game began.
This story was originally published December 2, 2020 at 3:04 PM with the headline "Man hits $4 million jackpot at NC Food Lion, ending popular scratch-off lottery game."