Kansas: A Kansas couple are now millionaires after wining a lottery - but they almost never even learned of their earnings. Back in March, Andy Patel was behind the counter at a gas station in Salina when a customer came in to have three lottery tickets checked. After checking the first two unsuccessful tickets Andy let the customer leave before remembering to check the third. Andy told the outlet he eventually realised that he had not checked the third ticket left behind, and still checked it.
“And that’s the one that ended up being a million dollar winner,” Kal Patel, whose parents own the Pit Stop gas station, said. He said that Andy called him, and the pair determined that they would track down the ticket’s owner, who Kal said he recognized by description as a “longtime customer.”
“They didn’t know they had the winning ticket, so they never would have known if I hadn’t found them,” Kal said. “But then you’d have to live through the guilt of that all your life.” Kal said that he drove to the man’s neighborhood, but couldn’t identify his home by the customer’s vehicle. About to give up and return to the store, he spotted the customer driving out of the neighbourhood.
After following in his car, eventually the man stopped and Kal showed them their winnings. After hearing the news, “They started shaking. They couldn’t believe it.” Kal said, “It felt good to find it and then find them.” Their good deed did not go without reward. Both Andy and Kal were awarded the Helping Hand from local firm, DeVaughn James Injury Lawyers, earning $1,200.
