A Coburg man has discovered that his passport wasn’t the only thing gathering dust after he cracked open his storage unit to find an old Weekday Windfall ticket worth $1 million that had been sitting unchecked for over eight months.
The Melbourne resident held the only division one winning entry in Weekday Windfall draw 4487, drawn 27 December 2024. He pocketed $1 million, but didn’t realise it until late last week.
As he had not been a part of The Lott Members Club and registered his ticket to a player card or online account, officials from The Lott had no way of contacting him about his buried treasure.
When an official from The Lott spoke with the winning man, he was over the moon and delighted he hadn’t thrown out the ticket in the meantime.
“I’m not bad!” he laughed.
“I had no idea until I went through my storage unit and found some old tickets.
“I was actually looking for my passport, but stumbled across them and just thought I’d give them a scan and see what’s there. That’s when the $1 million popped up.
“I’m just glad I didn’t throw them out!”
When asked how he planned to use his million-dollar bounty, the humble man shared the win wouldn’t change him.
“I don’t know yet. At the end of the day, it's money and that doesn’t equal happiness,” he said.
“But I am very excited. I did notice my passport has expired. I can definitely get a new one now.
“I’d like to help my mum too.”
His winning entry was purchased from Coburg Hub Lotto & The Deli, 401 Sydney Road, Coburg.
Coburg Hub Lotto & The Deli manager Prokafh Kundu said he was thrilled the mystery millionaire had come forward to claim their prize.
“Wow! It definitely feels better to hear they’ve found their ticket!” he said.
“We’ve been hoping they’d come forward soon so we’re very excited.
“We’ve sold many prizes here, but this one had us on the edge of our seats as it had been so long since the draw.
“Congratulations to our lucky customer! We wish you all the best with your prize.”
The Lott spokesperson Khat McIntyre said she was relieved the winner had finally checked their ticket.
“It’s always great to unite a winner with their prize, especially one that has been unclaimed for a long time,” she said.
“This is a perfect example of why you register your tickets to The Lott Members Club – if you forget to check your ticket or happen to lose it, you would still be united with your prize.
“Imagine being a newly-minted millionaire, but not knowing it!”
The winning numbers in Weekday Windfall draw 4487 on Friday 27 December 2024 were 41, 28, 31, 35, 39 and 36 while the supplementary numbers were 34 and 27.
Across Australia, there was one division one winning entry in Weekday Windfall draw 4487 – the one in Victoria.
