$1 million lottery ticket forgotten in mail pile for months

KENTWOOD, Mich., Sept. 23 (UPI) -- A Michigan woman was found to be a $1 million lottery winner after her winning ticket sat forgotten in a pile of mail for nearly four months.

Linda Tuttle of Kentwood told Michigan Lottery officials she purchased a ticket for the May 26 Mega Millions drawing at T&J Party Store and promptly forgot about the ticket.

Tuttle said she went back to the store recently and chatted with a clerk who told her a $1 million lottery ticket had been purchased at the store and remained unclaimed.

The woman said she searched through a pile of mail at her home to retrieve the ticket, which she discovered matched the five numbers from the drawing -- 01-39-52-69-72. She said she hid the winning ticket in a chocolate tin until she traveled to Lansing to claim her prize Tuesday.

Tuttle said she plans to use some of her winnings to visit Chinese exchange students she hosted at her house.