A North Carolina retired Army vet won a $4 million lottery jackpot after using numbers from a fortune cookie
- A North Carolina man won the lottery using numbers from a fortune cookie.
- Gabriel Fierro, 60, picked up his $4 million prize on Thursday.
A North Carolina man won a $4 million Mega Millions lottery jackpot after using numbers from a fortune cookie, a win he said left him "dumbfounded."
The winner, 60-year-old Gabriel Fierro of Cornelius, North Carolina, obtained the cookie during one of his weekly visits with his wife to a restaurant called Red Bowl in Charlotte, according to a press release.
Fierro said he decided to take a risk and play the numbers listed on the paper inside the fortune, telling North Carolina Education Lottery officials that he felt inspired to try them "on a whim."
The disabled combat veteran, who served 32 years in the Army, purchased his ticket online for $2 and added the $1 Megaplier option, which allows players to multiply any win.
"He matched all five white balls to win $1 million, and then the prize quadrupled to $4 million when the 4X Megaplier hit," the press release said.
Fierro told officials he was amazed when he received the email notifying him that he won, adding his wife thought it was "it was an April Fool's joke or maybe a scam."
After celebrating his win, Fierro picked up his prize on Thursday and hs plans to invest most of it, the press release said.
Last year, another North Carolina man won a $500,000 Powerball prize after playing numbers from a fortune cookie he received with his Chinese takeout, the New York Post reported. A recent study revealed that at least 146 people won the lottery using numbers from a fortune cookie between 2004 and 2021, the outlet also reported.