SACRAMENTO – It’s been nearly two months since a winning Fantasy 5 ticket was purchased in Lancaster and Lottery officials are waiting for the winner – or winners – to step forward and claim their prize. The ticket is worth $179,902.
The five winning numbers were 9, 11, 13, 17 and 20. The ticket was sold at the Smoke 4 Less at 4073 West Avenue in Lancaster for the October 20 drawing. Winners have 180 days from the date of the draw to claim prizes and the Lancaster winner has approximately four months left to come forward.
Less than 2 percent of Lottery prizes go unclaimed. Most are claimed within the first few days after a draw. For the fiscal year 2007-2008, nearly $26 million in prizes went unclaimed. Players can always check past winning numbers by visiting the Lottery’s Web site at www.calottery.com, select the game played and click on the link to “winning numbers.”
California Lottery officials want to remind winners to sign the backs of their winning tickets, keep tickets in a safe place and contact Lottery officials or visit your local Lottery District Office (http://www.calottery.com/AboutUs/Locations) as soon as possible.
More than 95 cents of every Lottery dollar is returned to the community in the form of contributions to education, prizes and retail commissions. The California Lottery contributes at least 34 cents of every dollar that players spend on Lottery products to public education and returns more than 50 percent of sales to players in the form of prizes. Since its inception in 1985, the Lottery has contributed nearly $21 billion to California schools out of total sales of more than $56 billion. Retailers benefit too, earning $3.6 billion in compensation since 1985.