SALEM, Ore., Dec. 10 (UPI) — The Oregon Lottery said an out-of-state man who claimed a $6.4 million jackpot is from far, far out of state — Baghdad, Iraq to be precise.
Lottery officials said mystery surrounded the man who won the Aug. 24 drawing until he finally claimed his prize Dec. 1 and was revealed as a Kurdish man from Baghdad, Iraq, who purchased his winning ticket online through a third-party service.
Officials said the lottery doesn’t have any rules against international players or online purchasing via third-party services.
Lottery Director Jack Roberts said the organization decided to make an exception to its usual policy and keep the man’s name confidential for his safety.
“In this case, I made the decision based on talking to the guy,” Roberts told The Oregonian. “I do believe that there is a personal safety risk to him and his family… I would hope that people would respect the reasons for not giving the name. It’s not going to mean anything to them, but it could to someone halfway around the world.”
Lottery spokesman Chuck Baumann said the man’s arrival at the organization’s Salem headquarters Dec. 1 answered the mystery of why the winner had yet to claim his prize.
“We thought he might be waiting for the new tax year or something like that,” Baumann said. “Never in our wildest imagination did we think he was in Iraq trying to figure out how to get here.”
“This is absolutely unprecedented for the Oregon Lottery,” Baumann told KTVZ-TV.
The man, described as in his 40s, opted to collect his prize via installments paid over 25 years.
Comment count on this article reflects comments made on Breitbart.com and Facebook. Visit Breitbart's Facebook Page.