Jake Mauceri of Leland is planning a honeymoon in Aruba after a $5 scratch‑off ticket delivered the first $200,000 top prize in a newly launched lottery game.
“We popped a bottle of champagne to celebrate,” he said.
Mauceri and his wife married three months ago and moved to North Carolina just two months back. He said he couldn’t wait to share the news with her after realizing he’d won.
“She said, ‘You’re lying to me,’” he recalled with a laugh. “It took her a minute.”
Mauceri purchased the winning Cash King ticket at the Minuteman Food Mart on Mercantile Drive in Leland. “You don’t really believe it at first,” he said.
He claimed the prize Friday at lottery headquarters, taking home $144,021 after required state and federal tax withholdings. Along with the honeymoon, he plans to pay down bills and invest part of his winnings.
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