A Tucson woman won $199,019 when she hit a jackpot at Desert Diamond Casino last Saturday.
Karla Florez, a mortgage lender from Tucson, came to the casino to celebrate a co-worker's birthday. She went to a quarter slot machine favored by herself and her mother. Florez spent $20, and won the progressive prize.
"It was luck, plain and simple," Florez said. She plans to use the money to "pay off some debt and help mom out."
The Desert Diamond Casino has paid more than $27.7 million in MegaJackpot prize money since 1996.
The casino is part of a statewide Native American progressive network that includes more than 20 tribal casinos in Arizona. Progressive systems allow for larger jackpots than traditional stand-alone slot machines, because each coin played in a linked machine contributes to the jackpot.
Saturday's hit at the Desert Diamond is the fourth paid in Arizona this year.
