Eight W.Va. women share $276M

Vicki Smith
Associated Press

March 18, 2008 11:50 am

— MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Eight women who believe they hold a Powerball ticket worth $276.3 million are public servants who reported to work as usual Monday, but at least one of their husbands has already quit his job.
Sheriff's Deputy Roger Magro told The Associated Press that his wife, Crystal, and seven other women in the Monongalia County tax office believe they won the Saturday night drawing.
"It's their day," he said shortly after turning in his resignation letter. "I'm just tagging along."
Magro, a 27-year veteran who became eligible for retirement last fall, said he will work a few more weeks, then turn his attention to a variety of yard projects.
"I could have retired in November, but I just didn't because I didn't have anything to do," he said. Now, "For obvious reasons, I'm going to hang it up."
The West Virginia Lottery is working to confirm the validity of the ticket and has scheduled a news conference for 2 p.m. Tuesday, said spokeswoman Libby White.
The winning ticket was sold at 5:14 p.m. Thursday at Paula's, a video poker bar in Westover, just across the Monongahela River from Morgantown. Paula's will receive $100,000.
"We were glad it was in West Virginia," said Maria Skidmore, regional manager for the company that owns Paula's.
Lottery Director John Musgrave talked Monday with Linda Fominko, chief deputy in the tax office and one of the eight apparent winners, White said.
"They have sought professional advice and seem to be well prepared," she said.
The office has 11 employees, but only eight contributed money to purchase tickets. The others who contributed to the pool were Allecia Priore, Andrea Grey, Amanda Pugh, Judith Gapen, Paula Pride and Jessica Dotson.
Magro said one of the women came knocking at his door at 2 a.m. Sunday with the news.
"I just thought, 'You're full of baloney,"' he said. "But she was adamant about it."
Magro said his wife will likely continue working in the tax office, along with Fominko.
"We're not in a hurry to run off anywhere, or do anything in particular," he said.
The eight women declined interviews, quietly serving taxpayers and accepting congratulations in the courthouse basement as a few sheriff's deputies kept watch.
If the ticket is validated, the group would receive a lump sum payout of nearly $140 million - or $139,421,731.44 - before taxes.
After taxes, the payout would be $95.5 million, White said. If divided eight ways, each person would receive $11,937,985.75.
The ticket holder has 180 days to cash in the ticket, and winners often opt to get their financial planning in order before claiming the prize.
More than 1.5 million tickets were sold in West Virginia for Saturday's drawing. The winning numbers were 6, 22, 42, 43 and 47. The Powerball was 16 and the Power Play was 2.
This jackpot marks the seventh time a ticket sold in West Virginia has won Powerball.
It is the seventh-largest win in Powerball history and the largest win in West Virginia since December 2002, when Jack Whittaker won the $314.9 million jackpot, lottery officials said.
Whittaker, a self-made millionaire long before his win, has been embroiled in scandals and lawsuits ever since, charged twice with drunken driving.
Though his foundation has spent $23 million building two churches, misfortune dominates his legacy: His home and car were repeatedly burglarized. His wife left him. His drug-addicted granddaughter - his protege and heir - died at 17.
In an interview with the AP last fall, he had some advice for future winners:
"If you win, just don't give any money away because the more money you give away, the more they want you to give. And once you start giving it away, everybody will label you an easy touch and be right there after you. And that includes everybody. There are no omits in that. That includes everybody."