New York Lottery Visits Tudor Hotel At United Nations to Award $40,000,000.00

Unveils New "WIN $1,000,000 A Year For Life" Game; Most Lucrative Instant Ticket in NY Lottery History

Celebrating the diversity of New Yorkers and its players with roots from all over the world, the New York Lottery today visited the Tudor Hotel at the United Nations to award prize checks totaling some $40,000,000.00 to eleven of its newest Lottery millionaires from the five boroughs of the Big Apple.

The Lottery also announced the launch of a new "WIN $1,000,000 A Year For Life" instant game ticket, which will be on sale at 16,000 retailer locations on September 2^nd, 2008.

The first-of-its-kind game will offer players a shot at winning the largest jackpot prize on a scratch off ticket in the Lottery's over 40 year history. As long as winners of this prize keep living, the New York Lottery will keep paying this prize, for life. The new ticket offers fifteen chances to win a variety of different prizes with overall odds of winning some kind of prize at 1-2.93 on tickets randomly distributed statewide. It costs $30.

Some 75% of New Yorkers play lottery games. Today's lottery players represent the diversity and demographics of New York State across lines of ethnicity, age, gender, education and income. A microcosm of not only America, but the world, today's gathering of New York Lottery winners is the most ethnically diverse and largest to receive prizes in a single gathering in 2008.

As part of New York's Labor Day Weekend festivities, the Lottery saluted the City's reputation as a destination for generations of people from all over the world to come to work hard, live, achieve a quality education, enjoy world class entertainment, and - - "hey, you never know" - - earn a fortune doing all these things.

Today's new millionaire winners include three who won jackpot prizes from three different wildly popular "Win For Life" themed instant games:

• Mohammad Jafri, a 38-year-old second generation Pakistanian retailer living in Brooklyn struck it rich when he scratched off a $10,000,000.00 million prize on the Lottery's Win for Life Spectacular instant ticket. The prize on the twenty dollar ticket guarantees a $10,000.00 A Week For Life payout, currently the most lucrative prize offered to instant game players. The prize is awarded in quarterly gross payments of $130,000.00 for life or $83,853.00 after federal, state and city taxes are withheld. Jafri purchased his ticket at Johnson Grocery, 8520 20^th Avenue in Brooklyn on August 4^th and claimed his prize on August 12^th at the Lottery's Customer Service Center in New York City. The father of two said he plans to use part of his new found wealth to invest in his family business, which was started by his father.

• Li Quan He, a 29-year-old retail clerk from China now living in Woodside Queens claimed a guaranteed $5,000,000.00, or $5,000.00 A Week For Life, from the Lottery's second largest prize offered on an instant game, Set for Life. He, who works the night shift six days a week at his father's store, will see financial daylight after receiving an initial check and gross payment of $70,000.00, or $45,151.00 after taxes are withheld. Following the initial payment, he will receive recurring quarterly gross payments of $65,000.00 for life, a check that will total $41,926.00 after required tax withholdings. He purchased his ticket at Can Xiang He Store, 127 East Broadway in Manhattan on August 7^th, 2008 and redeemed his prize the following day at the Lottery's Customer Service Center in New York City. An avid sports fan, he plans to use his prize winnings to help his relatives and the needy, pay off his mortgage, and take in as many Yankees, Giants and Knicks games as he can.

• Christopher DeTorre, a 45-year-old construction worker of Italian decent, "family guy" and father of two girls from Brooklyn received a Win $1,000 A Week for Life jackpot prize, or guaranteed $1,000,000.00 dollars. The prize will be paid in an initial gross payment totaling $15,000.00 and a check totaling $9,675.00 after required taxes are withheld. He will receive recurring quarterly gross payments for life totaling $13,000.00 and a check totaling $8,385.00 after required taxes are withheld. DeTorre purchased his winning ticket on July 28^th at B & B Variety, 8104 15^th Avenue in Brooklyn, and claimed his prize on the same day at the New York Lottery's Customer Service Center in New York City. He plans to use his new found wealth to save for retirement, go hunting and fishing, and enjoy some simple pleasures like eating well.

• Gulnara Manasian, a home care attendant from Brooklyn of Russian origin, won $1,000,000.00 dollars playing the Lottery's $1,000,000.00 Dollar Mania instant game. She purchased her ticket on August 9^th at Meera News on 1029 Brighton Beach Avenue in Brooklyn and claimed the prize on August 11^th, 2008 at the New York Lottery's Customer Service Center in New York City. The prize pays $50,000.00 annually over twenty years and $32,251.00 after required taxes are withheld. The 53-year-old mother of two and grandmother of three children says her family is the "love of her life" and she plans to build a new home with her prize winnings.

• Connie Kui, a 57-year-old grandmother who owns and manages a photography and film store in Manhattan at which she works seven days a week, claimed a $3,000,000.00 million jackpot prize from a Money, Money, Money instant ticket. Kui, who settled in Staten Island after emigrating from her native Hong Kong 40 years ago, purchased her winning ticket on July 28^th, at the Visual Arts Photo Center on 50B Mulberry Street in Manhattan. She redeemed the prize the following day at the Lottery's Customer Service Center in New York City. The prize will pay $150,000.00 annually over twenty years, or $96,753.00 after required federal, state and city tax withholdings. She told the Lottery she "slapped her face" after seeing her winning numbers and plans to use her prize winnings to pay off some bills and take a well-deserved vacation.

• Sean Francis of South Ozone Park claimed a $1,000,000.00 dollar jackpot prize on the Big Bucks instant game. A 42-year-old maintenance worker at the Creedmoor Psychiatric Center and father of two, Francis immigrated to the United States from Trinidad twenty one years ago. He purchased his winning ticket on August 14^th, 2008 at YLW Inc at 222-15 Braddock Avenue, Queens Village and claimed the prize the following day at the Lottery's Customer Service Center on Long Island. The prize is paid in annual installments of $50,000.00 for twenty years, or $32,251.00 after federal, state and city tax withholdings. With his new financial windfall, he plans to return to school for air conditioning training and also save for his children's education.

• The "Luck of the Irish" smiled on the McGeough family of Queens, winners of a recent $19,000,000.00 million "Lotto" jackpot drawing held on July 30^th, 2008 claimed their prize from a "Quick Pick" ticket on August 22^nd, 2008 at the Lottery's Customer Service Center in New York City. The father Joseph, 77, mother Helena, 64, and children Paul, 32, Brendan, 30, and Una, 33, will split the jackpot prize five ways. The winning ticket was purchased at the Stop and Shop on 249-26 Northern Boulevard in Little Neck. The winners spent $3.00 on six Lotto "Quick Pick" numbers and chose the "Lump Sum" option as their prize. The gross total of the Lump Sum option on this prize, before taxes are withheld, is $10,203,783.00. Each family member will receive a one time gross payment of $2,040,756.60 prior to tax withholdings and a check for $1,316,328,60 after required federal, state and city taxes are withheld.

The New York Lottery contributed nearly $2.6 billion to help support education in New York State on revenues of $7.549 billion in fiscal year 2007-08 - - a profit margin of 34.3%. The New York Lottery continues to be North America's largest and most profitable Lottery, earning over $34.2 billion in education support statewide since its founding over 40 years ago.

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