$162m Mega Millions Winners on Brink of Poverty - 01-06-10

January 6 - The great thing about multi-million dollar lottery winners the world over, is that most have an interesting story to tell. And the New York state winners of a whopping $162 million Mega Millions lottery jackpot last week too have a personal story to tell, apparently one of abject poverty.

While at this point little is known about the lucky Mega Millions lottery winners, what is known is that they are a couple from upstate New York and that when they purchased the winning lottery ticket for $5 from a Rocky Point card store in Long Island, they barely had a cent left to their names.

Said New York lottery spokesperson, Jennifer Givner, 'While we cannot release the winners' names just yet, we can confirm that the winning Mega Millions lottery ticket was handed in by the winners at a New York Lottery office in upstate Fishkill, and that they were accompanied by their attorney.

'They came into our Hudson Valley office and our on-site security features associated with the ticket confirmed that it was the winning Mega Millions ticket,' she said. At the same time, the winners were thought to have told lottery officials that they were 'on the brink of poverty' before their windfall.

The couple's lawyer, Greenport-based attorney Michael D. Solomon, confirmed that the ticket was validated and that he represents the couple who hail from Suffolk County. He said they met as high school sweethearts and have been married for 39 years. He described their mood as 'ecstatic.'

Under lottery commission rules, the winning couple will have to appear at an upcoming press conference where they'll identify themselves and be given the chance to tell their story, which will no doubt prove to be an interesting one. They'll also be asked what they're planning to spend their millions on.

Mega Millions is America's biggest lottery jackpot game with jackpots starting at $12 million, with other prizes ranging from $2 to $250,000.