Two lottery players split $5 million prize — a year later, one has yet to claim their winnings

Someone in Canada is now a multimillionaire, except there’s a chance they may not know it yet, and the deadline to claim their prize is nearing.

That person likely purchased a lottery ticket, dreaming of winning a prize, and, as it turns out, they actually did. According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG), the lottery player purchased a ticket almost a year ago.

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A Lotto 6/49 ticket for the August 16, 2023, draw was sold in Toronto, and it matched the Classic Draw’s six winning numbers 02, 03, 06, 07, 17, and 27. Another lottery player in BC also had the same numbers after purchasing his ticket on PlayNow.com. As a result, both winning tickets split the $5 million prize.

North Vancouver resident Ryoichi Yamada became $2.5 million richer after claiming his half of the jackpot.

BCLC

“I logged onto my [PlayNow.com] account and realized there were a lot of numbers in there. I started shaking,” he recalled.

Yamada said he plans to use the money to take a trip home to Japan and purchase property.

But while Yamada has been able to make plans with his windfall, the other winner has yet to come forward to claim their winnings, and the August 16 deadline is now just days away.

A release from OLG stated, “Players must match all six numbers to win the jackpot prize and have one year from the draw date to claim their prize.”

Daniel Chai/Daily Hive

In an interview with Daily Hive, OLG Spokesperson Tony Bitonti stated that only 1% of prizes go unclaimed and that despite CCTVs and credit cards, finding lottery winners can be tough. Sometimes tickets end up forgotten in jacket pockets, glove compartments, or junk drawers. Tracking down the rightful winner can be tough, especially if they pay in cash or buy their ticket from small mom-and-pop shops where security footage resets.

To date, the largest unclaimed prize was $14.9 million for a 6/49 ticket sold in western Canada in 2006.

So what if the winner comes forward long after the deadline?

It depends, said Bitonti.

“They’d have to have a really good reason [to claim tickets] past a year,” he said. “It’s a case-by-case basis and we determine if they’re the rightful owners of the tickets.”

Bitonti suggests that lottery players check and sign their tickets soon after the draw or, better yet, buy their tickets online.