Lottery drama: Canadian claims $40 million hours before deadline
It was a super close call for one Canadian lottery winner who came forward to claim their massive prize with just hours to spare.
The search for the rightful winner of an unclaimed $40 million Lotto Max jackpot came to a dramatic end on Wednesday, just hours before the Oct. 28 midnight deadline.
“With just hours to go before the $40 million Lotto Max ticket sold in Grey County was to expire, the ticket was validated at an OLG lottery terminal at an authorized lottery retailer,” states a release from OLG.
The winning numbers were 06, 14, 17, 19, 26, 43, 45, with bonus number 27. The ticket was sold in Grey County, Ont., a year ago, a popular destination for tourists and day-trippers.
According to OLG, it has been in contact with the winner and is arranging to meet with them to determine that they’re the rightful owner or owners of the ticket, a standard procedure for anyone claiming a prize over $1,000.
Once the claims process has been completed, OLG said it will hold a winner celebration and share their story.
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As the deadline approached, the Crown corporation had been issuing alerts to notify the public about the unclaimed prize, urging people to check jacket pockets, wallets, purses, backpacks, computer bags, vehicle compartments, kitchen drawers, and anywhere else people might store their tickets.
And it looks like those alerts worked.
“A prize of this size approaching its expiry date is exceptionally rare,” OLG had stated.
Had the winner not come forward, the $40 million would have gone back into the Lotto Max prize pool.
Luckily, the winner avoided the same fate as another winner who never came forward to claim a $70 million Lotto Max jackpot from the June 28, 2022 draw. The ticket was sold in Scarborough, Ont.
Check out the largest unclaimed prizes across Canada.
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