‘LIVING A DREAM’: Allen Park man wins $1 million Powerball prize

An Allen Park man replied, “not me!” to his friend who asked if he was a $1 million Powerball winner.

Hours later he found out he really did win a $1 million Powerball prize from the Michigan Lottery.

Here’s where he bought winning ticket

Abdulla Alhamyari, 43, matched the five white balls – 02-09-44-53-59 – in the July 20 Powerball drawing to win a $1 million prize. He bought the winning ticket at Kelly’s Fuel Mart Inc., located at 18060 Allen Road in Melvindale.

“I’m not a regular Powerball player, but whenever I’m at the store and have a few extra dollars in my pocket, I’ll buy a ticket,” said Alhamyari.

“The day after the drawing, I got a text from my friend asking if I was the big Powerball winner with a screenshot of the store where the $1 million winning ticket was sold. I didn’t think much of it, so I replied: ‘Not me!’ and went about my day.

‘Living a dream’

“I took my ticket to the store that night and scanned it. When a message came up to file a claim, the cashier said they hadn’t heard who the big $1 million winner was yet, so maybe it was me. I checked the winning numbers, and sure enough I’d won $1 million! It still feels like I’m living in a dream.”

Alhamyari recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim his prize. With his winning, he plans to pay off his mortgage, pay bills, and then save the remainder.