3/09/2010 - 1:11 PM

Eight Coworkers Claim $687,622 Lotto Jackpot

Tiffany Allen poses with a publicity check at Lottery headquarters after she and several coworkers won the $687,622 Lotto jackpot from the March 3 drawing.

For eight coworkers from the Office of Motor Vehicles in Baton Rouge, playing Lotto and Powerball as a group has been part of their weekly routine since September 2009.  The group could hardly believe it when they got to work the morning after the March 3 Lotto drawing and discovered they had the $687,622 jackpot winning ticket. 

Group member Tiffany Allen of Brusly shared that she was so excited when her coworker called to break the news that she pulled off the highway and ran around her car screaming with joy.  "I jumped out of my car and ran around it screaming and hollering," explained Allen.  "Then I got back in the car and called one of my other coworkers to make sure this was real." 

Allen explained that every Wednesday and Friday, each member of the group would contribute $2 to their Lottery fund.  One group member would then purchase eight Lotto tickets and eight Powerball tickets for the group, and they would usually check the winning numbers together the following morning.

James C. McCullough III of Baton Rouge claimed the prize Thursday at Lottery headquarters on behalf of his winning coworkers including Allen, Gloria Humphrey of Brusly, Deborah Rabalais of Livingston, Vada Stithem of Denham Springs, Datha Buriege of Maringouin, Chyrel Walton of Clinton and Barbara Alexander of Baton Rouge.

He received $481,336 after state and federal income taxes were withheld. Each person from the group will receive about $60,167. The winning ticket was purchased at Deluxe Shell and Deli on Southwest Railroad Avenue in Hammond, which will receive a one-time selling bonus of $6,876, or 1 percent of the jackpot.
The winning numbers for the March 3 Lotto drawing were 1-5-6-14-18-21.

Lottery ticket purchasers must be at least 21 years of age.  Draw-style game tickets must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing.  Anyone who may have a gambling problem or friends and family of anyone with a gambling problem should call toll free 1-877-770-7867 for help.  For security purposes, the Lottery strongly encourages players to sign the back of their tickets immediately after purchasing. 

Visit the Lottery's YouTube page at www.youtube.com/playlouisianalottery to watch Allen discuss how it feels to win Lotto.