Marin sheriff's lottery winners tell their story

Wednesday, May 06, 2009 posted 10:28 AM EDT

HAYWARD - Anneliese Hansen thought it was a cruel joke when boyfriend Brian Cabaud told her they had won the lottery Saturday afternoon.

Right before he finished his shift as a Marin County sheriff's detective, and right before she started her shift as a deputy sheriff, Cabaud convinced Hansen to meet him to prove they'd won part of the multistate $227 million Mega Millions jackpot.

They went to the place where he had purchased the ticket, Strawberry Chevron Food Mart in Mill Valley, and ran the ticket through a scanner. The ticket he'd bought after his Thursday swing shift proved to be a match: 9, 16, 24, 40, 43 and the mega number 35.

Cabaud stood there in his civilian clothes stunned, and he started to tear up. Hansen, who was in full uniform, sort of went nuts.

"It's always fun to see a deputy sheriff jumping up and down," Hansen said Tuesday at a press conference at a state lottery district office in Hayward.

Cabaud, 31, and Hansen, 24, both grew up in Marin, They did not reveal too much about themselves, skirting questions about their families, their co-workers and where they grew up. Cabaud said he was a 1995 Novato High School graduate, but Hansen wouldn't give details.

Cabaud has worked for the Sheriff's Office for 4.5 years and Hansen for 2.5. They met when Cabaud escorted someone into a sheriff's substation and his smile caught Hansen's attention. They now live together in Sonoma County and held hands throughout the press conference.

Asked about their relationship, she said, "He's my mechanic, and we live together."

The young couple has not decided whether to opt for an annual annuity that would total $75.7 million, before taxes, over 26 years (an average of $2.9 million a year) or accept a $48 million lump sum. They have 60 days to decide.

Hansen said it was fate that she brought up the issue of sharing winnings just last week. "I said to him, 'Just to be clear, if you buy a ticket or if I buy a ticket, it's our ticket, right?'" she said.

Tuesday they smiled broadly and said their heads were spinning with all the possibilities. In fact, despite that they posed with a fake check while cameras whirred and clicked, they have not accepted a dime yet.

"Our bank account still has the same disappointment in it right now," Hansen said. "We live very normal, blue-collar lives."

They said only two solid plans have emerged in their minds thus far: a trip to Disneyland, where they haven't been since they were kids and where they can't wait to ride Space Mountain, and a donation to a special cause.

"The one charity we want to help right away is the one that benefits the four fallen Oakland police officers," said Cabaud, referring to the March 21 incident in which a gunman opened fire and killed the officers before being shot to death himself. Cabaud attended the memorial ceremony in Oakland as a member of the Marin County sheriff's honor guard.

"All law enforcement is very much like a brotherhood or sisterhood," he said. "For them to give up everything they had to keep the public safe is something we should never forget."

Otherwise, Cabaud and Hansen said they need some time to let it sink in, saying they were in awe.

"It's very surreal," Cabaud said. "We intend to live our lives as normal as possible."

Asked what the money means to them, Hansen said, "It means stress right now."

The winners didn't say much about their job status with the Sheriff's Office or material items they've long wanted. Hansen said she's looking forward to upgrading from her 1996 Toyota Camry to the Volvo SUV she's had her eye on for a while. Cabaud, who used to work as a mechanic on General Motors vehicles, said, "Actually, I'm a Ford guy."

Already, old friends are coming out the woodwork. Hansen said phone numbers are popping up on her cell phone caller list that she doesn't recognize.

In November, Cabaud was honored by Sheriff Robert Doyle with a Life Saving Medal for helping a woman in distress. A 77-year-old woman from Bel Marin Keys was reported missing by her husband, and Cabaud found her floating in the canal behind their residence. He got in the water, where she'd been for about 30 minutes wearing only a nightgown, and pulled her out.

The two winners are recipients of the largest chunk of change in Marin lottery history dating to 1985. In 2004, Diane Adams bought a ticket in Sausalito worth $33 million.

Two other ticket holders in the multistate Mega Millions lottery over the weekend were in Ohio and Virginia.

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