Twelve
years after his £9.7 million win on the UK National Lottery; Michael Carroll is
living in a hostel for the homeless.
Carroll,
now 30, had his life-changing win in 2002, but his outrageous behavior and
over-the-top lifestyle resulted in him being labeled "the lotto
lout".
When the
former dustman collected his winnings he was wearing an electronic tag the
courts had imposed as a punishment for being drunk and disorderly. He
stated his initial purchases would be a fishing lake and a Ford Orion car. His
modest dreams did not last long. An early spending spree secured him a
mansion near Swaffham, and he promptly turned the garden into a race track for
bangers.
Carroll
wasted much of his wealth on drugs, bling, hookers, and a hard partying lifestyle
that resulted in a succession of court appearances. He vowed to change his
ways, in 2006, after he was jailed for affray and failing a drug test. By this
time he was already rumored to be broke.
By 2010
Carroll applied to get his old job back, and last year he was getting £6 an
hour for packing boxes in a Scottish biscuit factory. He has since been
dismissed and is now living in a hostel in Inverness.
"It’s like a horror film—it’s full of junkies," Carroll told a local tabloid. He is now negotiating with movie producers, who are considering turning his life into a movie, and Carroll is keen to see Danny Dyer cast in the starring role.
"It’s like a horror film—it’s full of junkies," Carroll told a local tabloid. He is now negotiating with movie producers, who are considering turning his life into a movie, and Carroll is keen to see Danny Dyer cast in the starring role.
