Aunt receives lottery ticket as gift from nephew — and wins $1 million in Virginia
A Virginia man earned some major brownie points with his aunt after gifting her a New Year’s Millionaire Raffle ticket that lottery officials said won a $1 million top prize.
After the winning numbers were announced Jan. 1, Mirian Smith called his aunt Geraldine Smith to find out if she had won anything, the Virginia Lottery said in a Jan. 6 news release.
“You’re a millionaire!” Smith told his aunt. “For real?” she replied.
After confirming the winnings, the aunt-nephew duo decided to split the winnings in half, the lottery said.
Smith told lottery officials the ticket was one of five he bought at a gas station in Ashburn, about a 35-mile drive northwest from Washington, D.C.
The New Year’s Millionaire Raffle featured prizes ranging from $500 to $1 million, lottery officials said. The odds-of-winning a $1 million top prize were 1 in 125,000.
Four other $1 million top prize tickets were sold; seven $100,000 tickets were sold; and 1,000 tickets won $500, the lottery said.
This story was originally published January 6, 2025 at 5:23 PM with the headline "Aunt receives lottery ticket as gift from nephew — and wins $1 million in Virginia."
