"They thought it was a joke": Group of nine bankers surprised by lottery win

Whether it’s popping out for coffee or going out for lunch, some people share regular routines with their coworkers. But for one group of colleagues from Ontario, their tradition is to buy lottery tickets.

The nine group members who work in banking said that they play the lottery every week.

“It’s a routine play so we didn’t expect anything out of the ordinary,” said Agustin Magno, who lives in Brampton.

While stopping for gas, Magno decided to scan their lottery ticket and that’s when he discovered that they had won.

“I messaged the group chat and they thought it was a joke,” he said, laughing.

Their weekly tradition seems to have paid off because the group won the Lotto Max second prize worth $73,463.40 in the September 6, 2022 draw.

In addition to Magno, members include Adam Yee of North York, Davin Wong of Mississauga, Khoa Nguyen of Toronto, Lai Qiao of Markham, Man Lam of Markham, Maria Solitario of Scarborough, Mark Reyes of Ajax, and Yunping Wong of Mississauga.

“I’m speechless,” said Lam, while at the OLG Prize Centre to pick up their cheque.

Each of them already has different plans for their share of the winnings (around $8,000 each), including paying some bills.

“This is life-changing,” said Yee.

Reyes added, “This is a nice bonus.”

The group’s winning ticket was purchased at Petro Canada on Financial Drive in Brampton.