A Victoria couple are multi-millionaires after splitting a Lotto Max jackpot prize that was drawn earlier this month.
Lahsen Rezrazi and Debbie Ramsay will have an especially memorable upcoming wedding anniversary, after winning a whopping $35-million from the June 6th draw.
Another fortunate individual in Ontario also possessed a ticket that matched the exact same seven numbers, leading to a thrilling split of the colossal $70-million jackpot.
Bother winning tickets matched all seven numbers.
“On the way to pick up Debbie from work, I stopped by a Save-On-Foods to get milk and cream,” recalled Rezrazi.
“Then I thought I would check my lottery tickets. I won $10, a free play, and the last ticket I scanned said $35 million!”
Rezrazi said he immediately called his wife who didn’t believe him at first.
“I thought something bad had happened,” recalled Ramsay.
“It took everything in me not to scream, and I even went back to the store [where the winning ticket was purchased] to scan the ticket! I also downloaded [BCLC’s Lotto App!] to check as well!,” said Rezrazi.
The couple were awared their prize today at BCLC’s Vancouver office.
Rezrazi and Ramsay said they plan to purchase a house by the ocean and a Mercedes camper van to “take an epic road trip across Canada,” with several stops along the way to see family.
“We’re going to go surprise relatives at the door to give them money,” said Ramsay. “Helping family is the biggest thing for us, and we can’t wait to see their faces!”
Rezrazi and Ramsay are experiencing a whirlwind of emotions as they have numerous reasons to rejoice, including their impending wedding anniversary. Nevertheless, amidst their excitement, they find common ground in Rezrazi’s astute observation: “It’s a lot of money!”
The Victoria couple purchased the winning ticket at Quality Foods in View Royal.
So far in 2023, BC lottery players redeemed more than $130 million from Lotto Max.
On Vancouver Island specifically, a soon-to-be retired financial advisor living in Sidney won the islands biggest draw to date taking home $55-million after purchasing a Lotto Max ticket on February 28th of this year.
BCLC and Lotto Max held a press conference on Tuesday, April 4th with William Scott Gurney on hand to answer questions and to give him his larger-than-life cheque.
Gurney bought the winning ticket on a whim at a Save-On-Foods customer service desk in Sidney on February 28th while out buying groceries for his family.
“I just stared at the ticket,” recalled Gurney.
