6/08/2009 - 11:34 AM

Mississippi Man Claims $200,000 Powerball Prize

Russell Oliver of Foxworth, Miss., has a reason to smile after claiming a $200,000 match-5 Powerball prize at the Lottery's New Orleans regional office.

Russell Oliver of Foxworth, Miss., nearly caused a traffic jam when he checked his Powerball ticket from the May 30 drawing to find he won $200,000.

"I stopped at a grocery store to get a winning numbers report. I got back in my car and at a red light, I checked my tickets," explained Oliver, age 61. "It was a shock to see the numbers! I made sure to pull off to the side of the road to call my wife!"

Oliver said he plans to pay bills with his prize money. 

He purchased his winning ticket at Lakeview Mini Mart on West Harrison Avenue in New Orleans. The store received a $2,000 bonus for selling Oliver his winning ticket.

Oliver's ticket matched all five of the white ball numbers drawn, but missed the red Powerball number. The winning numbers for the May 30 Powerball drawing were 01-23-42-51-59 and the Powerball number was 20.

Players must be at least 21 years old to purchase a Lottery ticket.  The Lottery encourages anyone who has a gambling problem or friends and family of anyone with a gambling problem to call toll-free 1-877-770-7867 for help.

For security purposes, the Lottery also encourages players to sign the back of their tickets immediately after purchasing.