North Carolina Woman Wins $277,777 Lottery Prize After Clerk Gives Her Wrong Ticket

A simple mistake led to a lottery win for a North Carolina woman. 

Zerineia Carmichael said she asked the clerk at a Goldsboro gas station for a Carolina Panthers scratch-off ticket, but was given a 777 scratch-off instead, she told North Carolina lottery officials. 

Instead of giving it back, she said something told her to keep the ticket. Once she scratched it, she realized it was her lucky day. 

"At first I thought I'd only won $7," Carmichael said. "But I kept scratching. I saw two 'sevens,' and then two more 'sevens.' I was in shock when I realized what I'd won.

"I'm very glad the clerk made a mistake and gave me this ticket."

She ended up winning $277,777 and took home nearly $200,000 after taxes. 

She plans to buy a new car with the cash.

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