Every so often, real life hands us a story that feels straight out of a movie. This is one of them.
In 2017, the forgotten lottery ticket belonging to Jimmie Smith, a 68-year-old retired security guard from East Orange, New Jersey, turned out to be worth an astonishing $24.1 million. He had tucked it away in the pocket of an old shirt, forgotten all about it, and discovered it only two days before the prize was set to expire.
Smith had bought the ticket at a grocery and tobacco shop in Manhattan’s Tribeca neighborhood back in May 2016. Like many casual players, he had a habit of picking up tickets and storing them without checking the numbers. Nearly a year later, after hearing TV reports about unclaimed lottery winnings, he decided to sort through his old tickets. That simple decision changed his life forever.
When he matched the numbers from the May 25, 2016 drawing and realized the truth, he was so shocked he needed to step outside for fresh air. In interviews, Smith admitted he was stunned but grateful. The New York Lottery confirmed his claim on May 23, 2017, noting that he had made it just in time to avoid losing the jackpot to expiration.
Smith chose to receive his winnings over 26 years rather than taking a lump sum payment—a fortune that almost slipped away forever.
Stories like this remind us how unpredictable luck and timing can be. Most unclaimed lottery prizes vanish forever, but this forgotten lottery ticket became one of the most remarkable last-minute claims in New York Lottery history when the story broke out.
