YORK, Maine — As people in Maine and across the country scrambled to purchase Powerball tickets hoping for a chance of winning the $1.4 billion prize, a much more modest but still impressive $1.1 million was won recently by a Hannaford supermarket customer in York.

The winner of the multi-state Hot Lotto lottery game has not yet come forward to claim the prize, which was won last month. Winners have a year to claim their prize.





“You can’t compare it to a large Powerball jackpot, but it’s still a significant prize for Maine,” said Tim Poulin, deputy director of the Maine Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations.

Some 15 states participate in the Hot Lotto game, with drawings held twice a week. Poulin said this is the first time a Maine store has sold the winning ticket since the state entered the lottery in 2009. Poulin said the state pays the taxes on the winnings, so the winner will receive the full $1.1 million.

Poulin said it’s not unusual for winners to wait to claim their prize; once they do, the winner’s identity becomes public.

Hannaford, meanwhile, will receive 1 percent of the winnings for selling the winning ticket, or $11,000, said Poulin.

Hannaford spokesman Eric Bloom said the supermarkets sell many lottery tickets, “so it’s not unusual to have a winner. But it is unusual to sell a $1 million ticket. It goes to show you people can actually win the lottery,” he said.