(Clive, IA) -- A West Des Moines man, just recently laid off from his job, found an old lottery ticket while cleaning out his company car. Casey Langan says he checked the numbers and realized the ticket was worth $50,000.
“It couldn’t be better timing: Christmas, just getting let go from the job,” Langan said. “It was perfect timing.”
Langan says he bought the Powerball ticket nearly a year ago from a Kwik Star convenience store in Waterloo, but never checked the numbers. He says it was in the company car's console ever since he bought it.
“I’ve been driving around for a year with $50,000 in the car, really,” he said. “If I didn’t get laid off, I don’t think I probably would’ve grabbed it. Things happen for a reason.”
Langan claimed his prize about five weeks before it would’ve expired. In Iowa, lottery players have up to 365 days from the date of the drawing to claim Powerball prizes. He said that if it weren’t for losing his job, he probably would not have uncovered the winning ticket until it was too late to claim his winnings.