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Uber driver wins $140K after passenger leaves a scratch ticket as tip

Congrats, James!
Credit: COLORADO LOTTERY

An unconventional tip led to an unexpected award for a Lakewood Uber driver.

James, from Lakewood, was given a $5 Super Special Ultimate Bingo Scratch ticket as a gift from one of his Uber passengers. He played the ticket and won $30. He cashed in the prize and bought six more of the same Scratch game.

"I kept winning these smaller amounts and just kept rolling it over and over into more tickets," said James, who lives in Lakewood. "I thought to myself, 'I'm never going to hit the end of these tickets'. It just kept going and going."

Credit: COLORADO LOTTERY

Fast forward about six weeks' worth of ticket scratching to Wednesday evening, when James stopped by a store in Centennial and picked up his lucky Top Prize-winning Bingo ticket.

He came into the Denver claims office with his parents in tow on Thursday to collect his prize money, and said he couldn't help but feel like fate had intervened with his win.

"I very rarely get the same passenger multiple times, but I'd picked up this guy a few times," he said. "I haven't been able to find him yet and tell him about this, but I hope I do."

James said he plans to pay his parents a large chunk of the prize since they have helped him out financially many times over the years. He also plans to "soup up" his vehicle so he can continue his ride-sharing gig for years to come.

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