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Christiansburg man claims $1 million lottery prize with one number away from jackpot

His wife bought the Mega Millions ticket a day before the drawing

Richard Barnett (Virginia Lottery)

CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. – A man in Christiansburg can thank his wife for becoming a millionaire.

Richard Barnett’s wife heard that the Triangle Market at 3631 Radford Road in Christiansburg sold a Mega Millions ticket that won $1 million, but the winner had not yet come forward.

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So she did what anyone with a little bit of luck would do — she bought a ticket herself.

“I told her not to get her hopes up,” Barnett said.

As if it was fate, the couple had their hands on the winning ticket.

The ticket she bought for him matched the first five numbers in the Nov. 17 drawing to win the $1 million prize, and this was the only ticket in the country to win the prize. If the ticket matched the sixth number, they would have won the jackpot estimated at $176 million.

According to officials, the winning numbers were 8-13-35-46-68, and the Mega Ball number was 16.

“I’m still the same person I was before,” Barnett told Virginia Lottery officials.

He said they have no immediate plans with the money.


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Nicole Del Rosario joined WSLS 10 in August 2020.