Winners News
 |
||||||||||||
LAKELAND MAN CLAIMS $30 MILLION FLORIDA LOTTO™ JACKPOT TALLAHASSEE-- The Florida Lottery announced today FLORIDA LOTTO™ winner Abraham Lee Shakespeare, 40, of Lakeland, claimed the Nov. 15 estimated $30 million FLORIDA LOTTO jackpot. Shakespeare, a driver assistant for MBM Corporation in Lakeland, chose the one-time lump sum payment option for his winnings in the amount of $16,980,209.01. He purchased his winning FLORIDA LOTTO ticket at Town Star, 7030 Highway 27 South, Frostproof, which will receive a bonus incentive of $40,000 for selling the top prize winning ticket. The winning numbers were: 06 - 12 - 13 - 34 - 42 - 52 According to Shakespeare, he was at home on Thursday night when he decided to check his numbers using a Lottery printout he had picked up from a store the night before. In a state of disbelief, he gave the ticket to his girlfriend to confirm that he had the winning ticket. His girlfriend compared the numbers on the ticket to the Lottery printout and confirmed he had the winning ticket. "I was very calm," Shakespeare said. Shakespeare plans to use his winnings to purchase a new home for himself and his mother, new cars for himself and his girlfriend and a puppy. His also plans to help his family. "I've been working on day-to-day jobs," Shakespeare said. "Now I don't have to struggle anymore." Total ticket sales for this jackpot generated approximately $21.3 million for the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund (EETF). Since 1988, the Florida Lottery has contributed more than $16 billion to the EETF, benefiting our students and schools, as well as funding more than 300,000 Bright Futures scholarships. By a two-to-one margin, Florida voters in 1986 approved a constitutional amendment authorizing the state to operate a Lottery for the purpose of generating significant additional moneys for education. Shakespeare is the 27th FLORIDA LOTTO winner to purchase a winning ticket in Polk County. He is the 862nd FLORIDA LOTTO winner since 1988. The next FLORIDA LOTTO drawing will be held Saturday, Nov. 18, at 11 p.m. ET with an estimated $3 million jackpot. # # # |
||||||||||||