Lawyer of Powerball winner claims $151.9 million jackpot

Saturday, December 22, 2007 posted 07:43 PM EST

About three weeks ago, Sheila Botelho told her boss at an Ann & Hope outlet store that she and her husband were retiring earlier than expected.

more stories like thisShe didn't mention the reason why: a $151.9 million winning Powerball ticket, which Botelho's lawyer -- and two burly bodyguards -- cashed in Friday at the Rhode Island Lottery.

"We didn't know she won the lottery," said Dick Travers, Botelho's former boss at the Seekonk, Mass., retail outlet. He finally realized Friday why Botelho left her job in the curtains department. "Isn't that nice, huh? Good for her."

Botelho and her husband, Antone, won the largest lottery prize in Rhode Island history on Nov. 28 and have spent weeks quietly consulting with attorneys, financial and estate planners and a small handful of trusted associates.

The couple lives in Swansea, Mass., and have tried to avoid their newfound fame. One has a medical condition that discouraged the couple from making a public appearance, said their attorney, Peter Saulino. He said the couple has temporarily left home to avoid curious reporters.

Instead, they asked Saulino to retrieve the winning $5 ticket from a safety deposit box, drive it to Rhode Island and make the arrangements for wiring the money. They purchased the ticket at a Warren convenience store.

Nearing retirement age, they opted to take the prize in a lump sum, about $51 million after subtracting federal and state taxes.

The decision was simple, Saulino said, quoting his clients: "At our age, we don't even buy green bananas."

So far, the couple has not decided how to spend their winnings, although they have discussed traveling, he said. They plan to keep their home in Swansea for now.

"They're not foolhardy," Saulino said. "They know that $151.9 million is a nice Christmas gift."

But he said their happiness was tempered by the knowledge that winning so large a prize could bring undesired publicity, money seekers and other trouble for them and their family, which includes their children.

Married for 40 years, the Botelhos have spent their adult lives working. Sheila first worked in an office, then owned her own beauty salon in Fall River, Mass., said her sister, Madeline Escobar of Portsmouth.

"They had nothing at the start," Escobar said.

Friday marks the second time someone in the Botelho family has claimed a major lottery prize. Antone Botelho's stepfather, Harry Moran, won a $10 million Megabucks drawing in 1991, said Dan Rosenfeld, a spokesman for the Massachusetts State Lottery.

Botelho's husband spent 30 years as a business partner at Ark Bait, a Swansea-based company that fishes for menhaden, which is ground into oil or sold to lobstermen as bait. Company President Gerald Souza said Botelho broke the good news to him about three weeks ago, but Souza would not describe the conversation further.

"That's between me and him," he said

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