Canadian Store Owner Wins $1 Million Lotto 649 Jackpot
A lucky store owner in Winnipeg, Canada has joined the country's coveted lottery Millionaire's Club after winning a $1 million jackpot from a Lotto 6/49 ticket he bought in his own shop.
Byung Cho, who owns Mak Milk convenience store on Talbot Avenue in Winnipeg, decided to put himself in line to win the lottery by buying a $28 combination Lotto 6/49 ticket from the store.
The following day when checking his numbers, Cho realized that he had a winning combination in hand, with all six numbers matching.
In a statement issued by the Western Canada Lottery Corporation regarding Cho's reaction to his $1 million payday courtesy of the Lotto 6/49, the lucky lottery winner said: "I just smiled as no one else was there."
He said that when his sister arrived later in the day and he shared the good news with her, she wouldn't believe him. Her disbelief led Cho to doubt his win once more and he did a further check of the numbers.
"I checked them on the terminal," he said. "I called my mom to tell her. She was excited too."
Owner Kept Working Despite Lotto 6/49 Windfall
Cho Byung didn't let his Lotto 6/49 win go to his head and continued working the entire day - despite the knowledge that he was $1,006,750 richer.
With every major win, the Western Canada Lottery Corporation (WCLC) goes through a standard review process to ensure the person claiming the jackpot is the rightful owner. However, when the winner is someone who sells lottery tickets, or one who is related to a seller, extra processes are followed to rule out the possibility of fraud that involve additional questions and a more in-depth review.
Recently, a clerk in another Winnipeg store was charged with stealing a Lotto 6/49 ticket from a customer, which was worth $90,000.
He raised the suspicions of the WCLC employees after he tried to cash in the winning ticket in August. The clerk purposely didn't give the unsuspecting customer a replacement ticket when he won one out of five lottery draws, and when the clerk scanned the man's original ticket later, he discovered that it was worth $90,000.
However, when he tried to claim the winnings, he was unable to answer basic questions regarding its purchase, leading to his arrest. To his surprise, the rightful winner received his payout down the line.
Byung Cho passed the WCLC's review with flying color and he was handed the cheque to deposit into his bank account yesterday.
Cho is not running off to spend all the money just yet. "I want to put it in the bank and take time to think about it," he said.
