A mystery man from Poole has become the second person to win the largest prize ever offered on a UK National Lottery scratchcard.
The lucky winner purchased his "£4 Million Gold" scratchcard from the Spar on Bournemouth Road in Ashley Cross, on Friday, July 18, 2014. It cost £10 and netted him the top prize of £4 million.
He scratched away the card's covering while he was still inside the store. Spar owner Ashok Shukla stood and watched, his eyes wide with amazement.
"He asked me to check the card through the machine in case it was a misprint," Shukla said. "I checked it through the terminal twice and it simply came up saying 'don't pay out, ask customer to call the hotline'.
Thinking back, Shukla recalled the man remained very calm.
"I think I was more excited than him," he said.
Advising his customer to go home, sit down with a glass of water, and not ring anyone for ten minutes, Shukla rang National Lottery organizers, Camelot, informed them of the win, and said the winner would be calling them soon.
Twenty minutes later the man returned to the store and said Camelot had confirmed the win and would be visiting him the following week.
"We are really happy for him and it's great news for us as it proves that these top jackpots are out there," Shukla said.
Only two more top prizes remain in the £4 Million Gold game. The odds of bagging one of them are one in 4,232,860.
