Store owner hopes lottery ticket will bring patrons

Monday, June 19, 2006 posted 11:03 AM EDT

The folks at La Quinta Liquor and Deli are hoping that $34 million is enough reason to get more people coming through the door.

"A lot of people have been coming in excited - everybody wants to know who won, but we have no idea," 20-year-old Robert Hayward, who is a clerk at the liquor store that sold the winning Lotto ticket, said Sunday.

A winning $34 million MegaMillions ticket was sold at this Avenida La Fonda business last week and was announced in Friday night's drawing.

The winner has yet to come forward to the store and cannot turn in the ticket to the lottery until today.

Hayward doesn't know if he sold the ticket or not.

"It could have been sold anytime between Tuesday and Thursday," Hayward, who has worked at the store for two years while he attends the College of the Desert, said. "We've never sold anything that big before."

The store owner, 58-year-old Murray Morton, will receive 0.5 percent of the jackpot - $170,000.

"I'm sure we'll be seeing a lot more customers for Lotto," Hayward said, anticipating an increase in patrons because of the buzz now surrounding the store.

The winning number were: 27, 30, 36, 38, 45 and the Mega Ball number was 13.

This is the fourth California, and first Coachella Valley, jackpot in the MegaMillions game.

Related Links
	Lottery News & Stories
	California Lottery Results
	Search Past California Lottery Winning Numbers