Coworkers identify Las Vegas jackpot winner

Thursday, June 3, 1999 | 1:40 a.m.

The 29-year-old Waipahu woman asked that her name be kept secret after she won a $4.5 million jackpot at a Las Vegas casino on Sunday.

But co-workers and friends couldn't keep it a secret, saying Nakamura told them she was going to win a jackpot on her trip.

Nakamura won the jackpot after spending about $60 in quarters on a progressive slot machine at the Mirage.

She now has to decide whether to take her winnings in equal payments made over 25 years, or whether to accept a smaller but immediate lump-sum payout.

Nakamura is due back at her job Thursday at flooring distributor Tri-West Hawaii, but some co-workers don't expect her to work much longer, considering she is pregnant with her second child.

"Everybody wishes that it was them," coworker Ricky Tahara said. "But it's at least cool that it is somebody you know."

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