A 56-year-old truck driver from New York won the $298.3 million Dec. 26 Powerball lottery jackpot.
David Johnson, of East New York, decided to take his winnings in a lump sum payment, which after taxes and withholdings, nets out to $114,091,248. His win is the second biggest in state history.
Johnson said that he did not realize that heād won the jackpot until he was alerted by a co-worker, according to the state Lottery Department.
āI got a call that the winning ticket was sold at the store where I buy my tickets,ā Johson said. āI went to the store and gave the ticket to the clerk to check. He scanned it and said ācongratulations.ā I needed to see it for myself, so I scanned and saw it read BIG WINNER.ā
Since he found out heād won, he said itās been an exciting time.
āI canāt even eat. I start and canāt finish my food. Iām happy with joy inside,ā Johnson said.
Johnson purchased his ticket at Arnoldās Service Station on Linden Boulevard across the street from Iberia Foods where he is employed.
