The mother of famous TV actress Oh Yon-su, 29, was reported to have made fortunes by winning $9.48 million (about 10.4 billion won) from a gambling machine at a hotel casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Kim Min-jong, 54, won the record sum of money by inserting only $6 into the slot machine called the “Wheel of Fortune” at the hotel at around 2:30 a.m. June 17.
She got lucky after playing slot machines for about 20 minutes along with her daughter and son-in-law, Sohn Chi-chang, 30, who is a popular television actor.
“As soon as I bet six dollars for the game, the bell began to ring so many slot machine players swarmed around me,” Kim said.
She said she didn’t know at first how much she’d just earned, and was taken by surprise, when she finally ascertained the unbelievable amount.
The International Game Technology, which is operating the gambling machines said that the amount was the largest one since Sept. 5 last year, when a man won $8.1 million in Mississippi.
Asked about how she’d use the fortunes, Kim said she plans to buy a house for her sister, adding that she also wants to bring her grand son-in-law to the U.S. to visit Disneyland.
Kim left Seoul for Los Angeles on June 12 with the entertainer couple on the occasion of the first anniversary of her grandson. They were visiting major tourist spots in the U.S.
The money will be paid to Kim over the next 20 years. She was given a check worth $474,379 for this year’s allotment. She also received VIP treatment from the hotel.
But she had a problem figuring out how much she should pay in taxes from the windfall of the money.
Sources estimate that Kim’s total taxes will amount to 4.15 billion won.