Cape May's lottery mystery: Who won?

LOWER TOWNSHIP - A mystery like this hasn't gripped Cape May County since, well, the

last

time a lottery ticket worth millions was sold around here.

Five months ago.

Then, Harold and Elaine Messner of Cape May County waited nearly two weeks to claim a prize of $166,557,083 - a mere $88 million after taxes.

This time, the mystery has lasted at least four days. But, according to locals, there are possible clues about the winner.

A name: John.

A passion: fishing.

A place: Blitz's Market in the town of Villas, where the winning ticket was sold.

The place is certain. Blitz's sold the ticket, expected to be worth $82.5 million in 26 annual installments, New Jersey lottery officials say. Other rumors and neighborhood chatter have whetted the appetite of locals for more.

They wonder "Who?" and fantasize "What if?"

"All I know is that it's not me," said Glenfield Knight of West Cape May. "If it was, I wouldn't be driving this raggedy truck."

Waiting for a table at the Rainbow Palace Family Restaurant, Edward Brooks, who runs a commercial dock, said he had heard that the mystery millionaire liked to fish.

"I don't know who he is," Brooks said, "I just hope he's a friend of mine."

Lisa Hanson, a stay-at-home mom shopping at the Wawa, said she hoped the winner wasn't a tourist.

"We were happy because it sounded like it was somebody from here, not somebody who was just passing through," Hanson said.

The community of Villas is a working-class town, said Walt Craig, mayor of Lower Township. Since the win, Villas has been under the media spotlight, a phenomenon that Craig said will last "for 15 minutes, until the next story comes along."

Until then, speculation continues.

"The only rumor I heard was that it was someone who lived across the border in Middle Township," Craig said.

Outside Blitz's, a place known for its 99-cent hamburgers, customers yesterday continued to buy lottery tickets. Nick DiRenzo, a teacher at Roman Catholic High School whose dad, Frank, owns the store, said there's been a steady stream of lottery players, including one woman who drove from Philadelphia just to get her ticket at Blitz's.

Ross James, of Branchburg, only came a few miles. He's vacationing in area and came to buy a few lottery tickets for himself and a friend.

He said he was feeling lucky, because his day started out that way.

"I got out of my bed and my feet hit the floor," James said. "Everything else after that is gravy."