Man discovers $24 million lottery ticket in an old shirt. It was about to expire in just 2 days.

Having things work out for the better just in the nick of time is one of the best feelings ever. Retired security officer Jimmie Smith, was fortunate enough to experience this feeling when he discovered a couple of unused lottery tickets in the pocket of his old shirt. The man never gave much heed to the tickets lying in his pockets considering the one-in-a-million possibility of actually winning, per Bored Bat. “I’ll check them when I have the time,” Smith would say. It sure took some magic or miracle but the man managed to check the tickets at the perfect time. Smith found a ticket that was about to make him the recipient of $24 million 2 days before it could expire.

Having got the ticket over a year earlier, Smith realized that he had two days to redeem his ginormous amount that had been silently sitting in his pocket all along. The New York Gaming Commission wasn’t able to find or track who the lucky ticket belonged to and Smith remained in the blinds. The commission managed to share an announcement one last time before the ticket could expire. If you have this winning ticket, we look forward to meeting you,” said Gweneth Dean, director of the Commission’s Division of the Lottery. The Commission even shared reminders on Facebook with the details of the ticket requesting people to check. People got eager to find out who could be sitting on such a prize days before its expiry.

Many checked their pockets and tickets just in case they’d be the winners but to no avail. Robert Velenage sarcastically said, “Checked with my pockets. And In a puff of dust and lint. They said, ‘Nope, not here.’" Jay Livares couldn’t believe someone would sit over a prize that long. He said, “Who the hell takes that long to claim a $24 million winning ticket? Sounds suspicious.” The search for the lucky recipient had gone far and wide until Smith was intrigued by the request and made a casual effort to check his tickets only to find that he had been the winner all along. “Do I see what I think I see?” Smith said, completely baffled by the fact that he had been sitting over 24 million dollars all this while.

“I had to stick my head out the window and breathe in some fresh air; I was in serious doubt. I had to convince myself this was real,” he added. What followed was quick action to check and avail of the lottery awaiting Smith and not a soul could fathom the fact that Smith managed to redeem his hefty amount in the nick of time. The Commission shared another post on Facebook letting the many curious people know that the winner had been found. Though they did not reveal the name at the time, Gweneth said, “We are thrilled that this lucky winner was able to locate this life-changing ticket.” Smith submitted the required proof and collected his wholesome amount via installments leaving everyone in relief at the fact that he didn’t miss out on the fortunate opportunity.

This article originally appeared on 3.9.24.