New York State Judge Andrew Piraino wins $3 million from a lottery ticket

It’s sweet justice.

A 68-year-old New York judge recently took home $3 million from a scratch card.

Salina Town Judge Andrew Piraino said he was buying his dailies one day last month when he noticed a new lottery scratch game and decided to spend $10 on a ticket to test his luck.

Piraino bought the Triple Red 777 ticket Sept. 9 at Kieffer’s Cigar Shop in Liverpool and went to his car to scratch it off, he told Syracuse.com.

“It looked interesting and it was a new game,” said Piraino, who is also a lawyer.

“I think it was only about a week out at the time. I asked and it was $10 a ticket.”

The New York central judge said he assumes he’d just buy another ticket if he recovered the $10 it cost.

He then matched his numbers and won the grand prize of $3 million.

“I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “I was kind of shocked.”

He said he took his ticket to his law office to see if others thought he read it correctly. He then made an appointment with the regional office of the state lottery to have his winnings registered.

Piraino took his winnings as a lump sum and will reportedly receive $1.5 million after taxes.

“Now I’m going to tell everyone they know someone who paid $800,000 in taxes,” he joked.

Piraino has been a city judge for 29 years. He said he plans to put most of his lottery earnings into retirement.

But he said he also plans to give his 27-year-old daughter, who recently married, some of his prize money and buy his wife a new four-wheel drive van.

Word of his wins has spread among friends, many of whom call to congratulate him.

“I keep telling them I don’t have the money yet,” he said.

The game Triple Red 777, won by Piraino, features four grand prizes totaling $3 million. The odds of winning a prize are 1 in 4.24 and the odds of winning a grand prize are 1 in 4,629,000.