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Someone Got Lucky In Uptown and May Not Know It

By Adeshina Emmanuel | December 13, 2012 6:30am | Updated on December 13, 2012 9:07am
 Uday Karna, the young owner of Myshop Convenience Store owner at 4600 N. Magnolia Ave.
Uday Karna, the young owner of Myshop Convenience Store owner at 4600 N. Magnolia Ave.
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DNAinfo/Adeshina Emmanuel

UPTOWN — Someone out there bought a winning lottery ticket from an Uptown convenience store — but it's unclear whether the winner even knows.

The Illinois Lotto is holding a $150,000 surprise for whoever purchased a Lucky Day Lotto ticket from MyShop Convenience Store at 4600 N. Magnolia Ave., and played the numbers 18-24-26-28-32 in Sunday's drawing.

It's not $1 million — but most people still consider $150,000 a lot of money.

"That's a Christmas gift," said grinning store owner Uday Karna, 25.

Karna already got his cut. He said he realized the winning ticket was from his store when a $1,500 commission payment rolled in a few days ago.

Karna gets his cut even though the person who purchased the winning ticket has yet to claim the prize, Illinois Lotto spokesman Michael Lang said .

An official with the Multi-State Lottery Association told CNN in November that about $800 million in lottery winnings went uncollected last year.

If nobody steps forward for Sunday's prize, however, the store still sold a winning ticket — and that could bring a certain luck of its own.

"People tend to like to buy tickets out of locations that have sold winners recently," Lang said.

Karna hopes as much.

"This is a winning store right now," he said.

Karna's business has sold several winning tickets totaling hundred of dollars since he opened it next door to Starbucks about four months ago. This $150,000 award tops all, Karna said. Now, he eagerly awaits another award: an official Illinois Lotto banner declaring that his store sold a big prize.

He is excited for whatever the extra publicity brings him.

"Maybe a girlfriend," Karna said, laughing. "But not a wife."