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Money rain for a man from North Carolina (symbolic image)
Photo: IronHeart / Getty Images
Rich thanks to forgetfulness: A man from North Carolina accidentally bet twice on the lottery "Lucky for Life" and almost landed the big hit.
The US media reported, including CNN and Fox News, citing the "North Carolina Education Lottery".
Scotty Thomas from Fayetteville said he was lying in his bed and watching a basketball game on TV and couldn't remember whether he filled out the form or not.
He then filled out the online form.
It was only the next day that he realized that he was taking part in the lottery twice - with identical numbers.
"It's just a blessing"
During the drawing on November 27, it turned out that the mistake wasn't actually a mistake: Thomas won the second highest prize: $ 25,000 annually, and the grand prize is even 365,000 annually.
"When I realized that I had won, I had to lie down on the floor because I just couldn't believe it," said the 49-year-old.
"It's just a blessing."
Instead of the annual payment, however, Thomas opted for a lump sum of $ 390,000 per note - a total of $ 780,000.
According to Fox News, he had around $ 550,000 left after tax was deducted.
With the money Thomas wants to invest in his company, pay bills, help his family and maybe buy a house.
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