A woman who scooped a USD 5 million lottery jackpot has told how she was so astonished at the win she lost her memory.

Winner Eunice Sample – a retired teacher from Chesapeake, a city in the US state of Virginia, – was at a loss when lottery bosses asked what she did when she realised she had won USD 5 million jackpot (GBP 4.14 million).

And all she could tell them was: “I was so stunned I don’t know what I did!

“I’m excited, happy, shocked, stunned, but I feel great!”

Newsflash obtained a statement from the Virginia Lottery on 10th March saying: “If you ask Eunice Sample how she reacted when she realized that the Virginia Lottery ticket in her hand was worth USD 5 million, she won’t be able to tell you.”

The statement said: “The Chesapeake woman bought a USD 173 Million [GBP 143.27 million] Extravaganza ticket at the 7-Eleven at 907 Great Bridge Blvd. in Chesapeake, scratched it, and won the game’s top prize.”

They added: “Ms. Sample, who is a retired educator, had the choice of taking the full USD 5 million prize over 30 years or a one-time cash option of USD 3,125,000 [GBP 2.59 million] before taxes. She chose the cash option. The store receives a USD 10,000 [GBP 8,283] bonus from the Virginia Lottery for selling the winning ticket.

“She is the first top prize winner in USD 173 Million Extravaganza (game #2143); that means two top prizes remain unclaimed. The game features prizes ranging from USD 30 [GBP 24.85] all the way up to USD 5 million. The chances of winning the top prize are 1 in 2,529,600. The chances of winning any prize in this game are 1 in 3.08.

“All Virginia Lottery profits go to K-12 education in Virginia. Ms. Sample lives in Chesapeake, which received nearly USD 28.6 million [GBP 23.69 million] in Lottery funds for K-12 education last fiscal year.”