Charleroi man wins $1 million Cash 5 jackpot
CHARLEROI – Seeing is believing, but it took Michael Matyas multiple double takes before he realized he had won $1 million in the Pennsylvania Lottery.
The retired Charleroi Regional police chief received a ceremonial million-dollar check Tuesday as part of winning the Cash 5 with Quick Cash drawing on July 19. He was presented the check at Giant Penn LLC Exxon station, 1001 Maple Drive, Charleroi, where Matyas bought the ticket.
Matyas, 70, of Charleroi, picked his numbers using Quick Pick and checked his ticket with the Pennsylvania Lottery’s app.
He said he bought the ticket on a Friday and went away for the weekend before checking it the subsequent Sunday. He was in disbelief of his good fortune.
“Of course, I couldn’t believe what I was looking at,” Matyas said. “I have a twin brother. I called him down and asked him to check to see if he was seeing what I was seeing. He did. This is unbelievable. I can’t believe I had the winning ticket. I’m still taking it all in. This whole experience has been fantastic.”
Matyas said he’s not a regular lottery player, but likes to buy tickets when jackpots grow large.
“Who knows? Somebody has to win it,” he said shortly after receiving the ceremonial check.
He has a few ideas about what he’ll do with his winnings.
“I plan on doing a lot of golfing, helping the family out and paying a couple of bills,” Matyas said.
Matyas has two children, Jenna, who lives in Florida, and Michael, who also lives in Charleroi. He said his wife, Michele, passed away in 2018.
Matyas retired 10 years ago after a stint as chief of the Charleroi Regional Police Department, and before that he was superintendent of the former Charleroi Police Department.
The latest Lottery win continues a streak of good luck for the Exxon station, as it’s the third winning ticket of at least $100,000 to be sold at the store since March 2023.
“I love having all these winners. I love it,” said Cari Mackesy, the store manager. “It makes our lotteries go up. It couldn’t have happened to a better person, somebody that actually needed it.”
The store earns a $5,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.
This Cash 5 with Quick Cash jackpot run began July 7 and lasted until July 19, generating more than $3.3 million in sales and an estimated profit of $800,000 for programs that benefit older Pennsylvanians.
The game’s record jackpot was a $3.2 million prize shared by two winning tickets for the Nov. 6, 2023, drawing. One of those tickets was sold at the Valero Fuel N Go on Hopwood Fairchance Road in Uniontown.
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