North Carolina Lottery Winner Sentenced To Life In Prison
By Sarah Tate
June 1, 2022
A North Carolina man who scored a massive $10 million lottery prize in 2017 before being arrested and found guilty for the 2020 murder of his girlfriend has been sentenced to life in prison.
Michael Todd Hill, age 54 of Brunswick County, was convicted of the first-degree murder of his 23-year-old girlfriend Keonna Graham in 2020, the News & Observer reports. Graham was reported missing on July 20, 2020, but was later found inside a hotel with a gunshot wound to the back of her head.
Prosecutors said Hill was the only person seen in the room with Graham based on surveillance footage from the hotel. Hill was arrested in Southport and allegedly confessed to shooting her after learning she had been texting other men. The pair had reportedly been involved in a romantic relationship for 18 months.
On Friday (May 27), Hill was convicted of murder and sentenced to spend the rest of his life behind bars without the possibility of parole for his role in Graham's death. The jury was in deliberation for only an hour before handing down their verdict.
According to the news outlet, Hill won $10 million in 2017 from a scratch-off lottery ticket, per ABC 11.