Man cleans truck, finds $50,000 Powerball ticket

April 6 (UPI) — A Missouri man who decided to clean out his truck discovered a two-month-old Powerball lottery ticket worth $50,000.

Jason Jacobs of Independence said he bought three Powerball tickets for the Jan. 24 drawing using Quick Pick, but he placed the tickets in the center console of his truck and forgot about them until late March.

“I cleaned out my truck last week and pulled out the tickets from my console to check them,” he told Missouri Lottery officials. “First thing I did was check how long the ticket was good for before it expired. I was afraid it had already expired for my chance to claim it. And then I realized I was still in the loop of not running out of time.”

Jacobs said he and his wife scanned the tickets at a local QuikTrip store. He said they were confused when the scanner’s reader pulled up the message, “Claim at Lottery office.”

“So we took the ticket up to the register to have it checked, and the lady said, ‘Sir, you just won $50,000,’” said Jacobs. “My wife said, ‘Oh, my God, Jason! Oh, my God, Jason!’”

The couple said the money will go toward a college fund for their 9-month-old daughter and possibly a family vacation.