Central Man Claims $1 Million Powerball Prize

BATON ROUGE – Central resident James Lapeze couldn’t believe his eyes when he checked the numbers on his Louisiana Lottery Powerball ticket after the Oct. 1 drawing and saw that he won $1 million by matching all five white-ball numbers.

Lapeze, whose home was damaged by floodwaters in August, plans to pay off his home and enjoy retirement.    

“I checked my numbers over and over again,” said Lapeze when he realized that his ticket was a $1 million winner. “I even had my wife check them because I really couldn’t believe that I won!”

The 72-year-old’s winning ticket matched five of six numbers to win the $1 million, which he claimed Friday at Louisiana Lottery headquarters. The winning numbers for the Oct. 1 drawing were 02-12-50-61-64 and the Powerball was 01. He received $700,000 after state and federal tax withholdings.

The winning ticket was sold at Romero’s Food Mart on Joor Road in Central. The store received a one-time selling bonus of $10,000 which is 1 percent of the prize.

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. More information about Lotto and other jackpot winners can be found on the Lottery’s website, www.louisianalottery.com.

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