March 8, 2007 in Nation/World

Georgia man claims half of record lottery jackpot

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Associated Press photo

Mega Millions lottery co-winner Ed Nabors, seen Wednesday in Atlanta, claimed half of the record $390 million jackpot.
(Full-size photo)

ATLANTA – When Ed Nabors discovered that he had won half of the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history, he sat stunned in his rig until a dispatcher radioed wondering what was going on.

Wednesday turned out to be a short workday for the 52-year-old truck driver.

“He was shaking so hard they sent him home from work,” said his mother, Doris Nabors, who shares a home with her son in Rocky Face, Ga., about 90 miles north of Atlanta.

Ed Nabors was the first person to claim part of the $390 million jackpot from Tuesday night’s Mega Millions drawing. The only other winning ticket was sold at a liquor store in New Jersey, and the holder did not immediately come forward Wednesday.

Nabors did not check his $10 worth of lottery tickets before going to bed Tuesday, and it wasn’t until a co-worker told him that a winning ticket was bought at his regular convenience store that he decided to take a look.

“I’m still numb,” Nabors said.

He elected to take his winnings in a lump sum instead of annual installments and will get $116.5 million before taxes, or more than $80 million after.

He bought his ticket Tuesday morning at a convenience store in Dalton close to a carpet mill run by his employer, Mohawk Industries. Nabors said he usually gets a cup of coffee at the store at least once a week. “That’s what I was doing that day,” Nabors said.

When asked whether he would keep working, Nabors said: “At least two more days.”

“I’m going to do a lot of fishing,” he said. He also said he plans to buy a house for his daughter, who has wanted to move out of her mobile home for a long time.

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