It’s the talk of Tunica—a couple walked into the Gold Strike Casino over the weekend and won about $2.5 million on a slot machine.
We got up with the man who made it big in the small town of Independence, Mississippi. The Tate County municipality has a population of only 164 and is home to a brand-new millionaire.
He claimed he was not even planning to gamble. He and his wife only wanted some crab legs.
He agreed to an undercover interview with Your News Leader since the exposure associated with a sudden windfall can be daunting, but he says he can’t stop thinking about the day he won big.
“Me and my wife just wanted some crab legs, and I was like, let’s go to the casino and get some crab legs,” he said. “And we played a little bit of black jack. She said, man I gotta go to the bathroom, and I said that’s alright. Went to the bathroom and I played the slots that’s right there by the bathroom, and I hit big.”
The man is in his mid-30s, works as a truck driver, and has lived in Independence his entire life.
“Man, I didn’t know what I did really,” he said. “I thought I did done broke the machine, and next thing I know security’s around me, all kinds of people around me. I didn’t know what to do.”
Word has spread quickly in Independence, where residents can’t believe what has transpired.
“At least let me hold 20, give me some,” Adriauna Rodgers joked. “But naw, I think that’s pretty good for them. I think God blessed them with this.”
And, while the man says he is considering buying a home in Florida, he adds he will most likely utilize the money to live comfortably in the little community he knows and loves.
“Get me a truck, pay for my house, live comfortably, stress free. That’s all it is,” he said.
