A woman who popped out to buy a turkey for Thanksgiving picked up a lottery ticket on a whim and bagged herself a whopping USD 4 million (GBP 3.3 million).

The 49-year-old winner – who chose to remain anonymous – said she bought the ticket at a shop in Troy, Michigan, USA, on 23rd November.

After taxes, she took home a lump sum of around USD 2.7 million (GBP 2.2 million), which she plans to spend on bills, home renovations, and her retirement.

In a statement obtained by Newsflash, Michigan Lottery Connect said: “A trip to the store to purchase a Thanksgiving turkey led an Oakland County woman to winning $4 million playing the Michigan Lottery’s VIP Millions instant game.

“The lucky 49-year-old player, who chose to remain anonymous, bought her winning ticket at the Kroger store, located at 1237 North Coolidge Highway in Troy.”

The player said: “It was the day before Thanksgiving, and my husband asked if I could run to the store and buy a turkey since he didn’t have time to.

“After going back and forth about who was going to go to the store since we were both busy, I agreed to.

“I purchased the turkey and then stopped and bought a VIP Millions ticket on my way out.

“When I got home and scratched the ticket, I saw I’d matched one of my numbers, but I didn’t scratch the winning amount.

“I logged in to the Lottery app and scanned the ticket on the app scanner. When confetti came up on the screen showing I’d won $4 million, I started shaking and felt like I couldn’t breathe. My family thought I was having a heart attack!

“I’m so glad that I ended up going to the store, because if my husband would have gone, we wouldn’t be here claiming a $4 million prize!”

The statement continued: “The player visited Lottery headquarters recently to claim her prize. She chose to receive her prize as a one-time lump sum payment of about $2.7 million rather than 30 annuity payments for the full amount.

“With her winnings, she plans to pay bills, complete some home renovations, and then save the remainder for retirement.”