Virginia Beach man claims million dollar ticket sold in Lynchburg

Aubrey Barbour will use money to help parents

LYNCHBURG – A million dollar lottery ticket in Virginia was set to expire June 30, but after five months someone finally came forward to claim the winning numbers.

Virginia Beach resident Aubrey Barbour bought the Virginia's New Year's Millionaire Raffle drawing as part of a Black Friday tradition while visiting his family during Thanksgiving in Lynchburg.

He purchased the ticket from Speedway on Campbell Avenue. 

Barbour says his sister started the tradition and the family usually buys three to five tickets at a time.
    
The drawing date of January 1 went past and  Barbour says he forgot about the ticket until he went looking for his checkbook in a drawer.
    
After throwing the ticket in the trash, something told him to go back and check it out.
    
He took the valuable ticket to a lottery office in Hampton where he was left speechless to find out it was worth a million dollars.  
    
Barbour says it's a family decision on what to do with the money. His older brother is a financial advisor.

"Back in February our parents' house caught on fire. They barely escaped with their life. So our first goal is to make sure they are taken care of. God has blessed me all my life and I'm retired from the military and everything. Family members just to make sure we have good, sound financial advice and come up with the plan of action," Barbour said.  

The retired Navy chief petty officer says he's glad he listened to the voice in his head to take the ticket out of the trash.
    
He won't quit his day job just yet. He'll be returning to work as a sports official for the Virginia High School League.
    
Another million dollar ticket remains unclaimed in Richmond.