The winner of the $343 million Powerball jackpot in New York finally won after playing the same numbers for 25 years

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November 15, 2018 8:27 PM

Robert Bailey, a 67-year-old retired government employee came forward on Wednesday to claim last month’s Powerball ticket.

The New York man who won a $343.8 million Powerball jackpot last month has been using the same numbers for 25 years.

Robert Bailey, a 67-year-old retired government employee came forward on Wednesday to claim last month’s Powerball ticket and walked home with its cash value of $125,396,690 after required withholdings, according to a press release from New York Lottery.

Bailey said he has been using the same six numbers for 25 years and that a family member suggested them to him.

He was stunned to find out the numbers on his ticket — 8-12-13-19-27 — were the winner when he checked online after the drawing.

"I said to myself, 'these look like my numbers.' I tried to remain calm and sat down to watch some shows I had on my DVR," he said. "I didn't sleep the rest of the night."

When contemplating what he would do with his winnings, Bailey said he plans to "do the right thing."

"I still want to be me; I can’t let money change me. But I want to do the right thing and take care of it for the next generation in my family," Bailey told NBC News. "That’s why I went to a lawyer and a financial adviser first and sat down with them and talked business."

He said he plans to buy his mother a house, travel and make "good investments."

Bailey wore dark sunglasses when posing for a publicity photo, and kept information about his family private during a press conference at the Resorts World Casino in Queens.

"You have to watch out for your safety, that's the main thing," Bailey said, according to USA Today. "With any type of money, and this type of money also."

Bailey's Powerball winnings, which were the largest in New York history, were half of a nearly $750 million pot that was up for grabs.

A woman in Iowa who picked the same numbers received the other half of the winnings. She told The Des Moines Register that the numbers were generated randomly for her.

But Bailey doesn't plan to stop playing the numbers any time soon.

"I will continue playing my numbers until this train runs out," Bailey said at the press conference on Wednesday.

He buys tickets at three different stores, including the Harlem Deli where he bought the winning ticket last month.

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