Camelot UK Lotteries announced the mystery winner of the million Lotto jackpot recently came forward with a valid ticket purchased in Worcester—but it’s not Susan Hinte, a grandmother who claimed she won the money but accidentally put the ticket in the wash, and submitted her crumpled and torn lottery ticket to Camelot for verification. The real ticket-holder asked not to be identified.
A Camelot spokesman said, “We’re delighted that the winner of this amazing prize has now come forward and we hope that they will enjoy their win. It would have been awful if the ticket holder had missed out on this substantial and life-changing amount of money. We would like to remind all National Lottery players to check their tickets every time they play.”
The spokesman said hundreds of people contacted Camelot claiming to have the winning ticket but that it had been either lost, stolen or destroyed. He said, “With prizes of this size, it’s perfectly normal to receive lots of claims from people who genuinely think that they may have mislaid or thrown away what they believe was the winning ticket. However, if we believe that somebody has intentionally attempted to defraud the National Lottery, then, just like any other company, we reserve the right to take whatever action we consider is appropriate.” Local law enforcement officials said they are not investigating the dozens of fraudulent claims and will only do so if Camelot wants to pursue them.
Previously the largest unclaimed ticket was a $91 million EuroMillions jackpot. The prize money was donated to charities.
Hinte previously attempted to claim $288 on a scratch card she said had accidentally fallen into a puddle, blurring the numbers.
