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Two Mr. Combses, but only one lottery winner

There are two Paul Combses in New Port Richey. For the one who didn't win the lottery, the attention is making him and his wife miserable.

By COLLEEN JENKINS
Published September 16, 2005

NEW PORT RICHEY - Last month, a winning Florida Lotto ticket brought Paul Combs a $20.8-million fortune.

So why is Paul Combs unhappy?

Because, his wife said, he's "the wrong Paul Combs." This Paul Combs has the misfortune of sharing a name and hometown with the guy who actually won the jackpot. During the past few weeks, he has been hassled by people hoping for a cut of his winnings. Except he doesn't have any winnings to share.

The attention, said the nonwinner's wife, is making the couple miserable.

April Combs called a St. Petersburg Times reporter this week to air her troubles. In a voice mail, she introduced her husband as "the wrong Paul Combs that didn't win the Lotto."

"We're getting weird phone calls," she said. "There's a whole bunch of people out there apparently who think we have a lot of money. It's really getting kind of out of hand."

It wasn't the first time she had spoken to the newspaper. The day that Paul Combs was announced as the jackpot winner, the reporter called April Combs and her husband thinking they were two lucky folks.

Nope, she said then. Not even close.

April and Paul Combs are retired. They live in a mobile home park. They used to live in Maryland, and Paul worked for the federal government. But he quit early after a drunken driver hit him and Combs lost an arm.

The couple are in their late 50s. They don't even play the Lotto.

"I guess we should," April Combs said.

She's not sure how many calls they've gotten, but the phone rings all times of the day. Someone called at 11:15 the other night.

One man pretended to be April's brother. She told him his voice didn't sound like her brother's.

"Oh, I'm on a speakerphone," the man said.

He said he needed money.

"Who are you?" April asked.

He lowered his voice and said, "Can I borrow $20?" Then he hung up.

Other people have called to congratulate the couple and ask what they are going to do with all the money, she said. A package came this week from a financial institution. It had their address but the names of the real winners, Paul and Charlotte Combs. The nonwinners didn't open it.

At first, April and her husband treated the calls as a temporary irritation. But the phone kept ringing.

"I just don't see it ending," April said, sounding tired. "This is bad."

Florida Lottery spokeswoman Leslie Steele wasn't sure what to make of April and Paul Combs' situation.

"Surprisingly, that's not a complaint we get from winners," Steele said Thursday. As for nonwinners, she said she has never received any complaints from them during her two years at the lottery.

Lottery officials regularly prepare winners for the media attention they likely will receive and suggest they quickly change their phone numbers. The day lottery officials announced retired grocery store manager Paul Combs as the jackpot winner, his phone already was disconnected.

Steele suggested the same solution for the other Combses, or an unpublished number as an alternative.

Meantime, April Combs has a message for the nuisance callers:

"If we won," she said, "we wouldn't still be here."

Colleen Jenkins can be reached at 727 869-6236 or cjenkins@sptimes.com

[Last modified September 16, 2005, 01:36:17]