Robert Johnson of Franklinton woke up Sunday morning to an email saying he won a $240,092 Cash 5 jackpot the night before.
“I was always hoping for it,” said Johnson of winning a Cash 5 jackpot. “So, it is amazing that I have been successful and made a decision at the right time on the right day to put that particular ticket in. I’m very excited.”
Using a set of his own numbers, Johnson purchased his winning ticket using Online Play through his NC Lottery Official Mobile App.
“I went through the app on my phone and the minute I signed in, it popped up the winnings of the Cash 5,” he recalled. “The first thing I said was, ‘Oh my gosh’ and then I showed it to my wife and she didn’t believe it at the moment. She thought it was a scam and I said, ‘No, this is for real!”
Johnson claimed his prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After required federal and state tax withholdings, he took home $169,867.
He plans to use the prize money to pay some bills and will use the rest to “get us better prepared for retirement,” he said.
Carolina Cash 5 tickets are $1 and drawings are held every night. Wednesday's jackpot is $163,000.
Cash 5 is one of four lottery games in North Carolina where players have the option of buying their tickets through Online Play either through the lottery’s website or with the NC Lottery Official Mobile App.
Ticket sales from draw games like Cash 5 make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $725 million a year for education. For details on how lottery funds have helped all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.