Woodcutter Hits $1.4 Million Jackpot

A man who made a meager living cutting firewood in the Eastern Oregon mountains has won more than $1.4 million playing the slot machines at an Indian casino.

Jim Shelley, 34, was on his way into the Blue Mountains on Friday when he stopped at the Wild Horse Gaming Resort on the Umatilla Indian Reservation near Pendleton.

He was playing the progressive dollar slots and planned to quit after spending $10 or $20, he said. Then it happened: Flashing lights said he had won $1,484,274.

“I was stunned,” he said. “I couldn’t say a word for about five minutes. I never did go up to the mountains.”