A fortunate man stumbled upon a lottery ticket he had forgotten in his coat pocket for six months, only to realize he had won £13 million. The man, a father residing in the Frankfurt area of Germany, had been unaware of his windfall despite a campaign to locate him, revealed Lotto Hessen company on Monday. It was only when the weather began to cool down and he retrieved a jacket from his closet, untouched since March, that he uncovered the ticket.
Upon discovering the ticket and checking the numbers, he was taken aback to learn he was the fortunate recipient of €15,336,286.40 (equivalent to about £13.3 million). Recounting the moment, the man expressed his astonishment, stating, “It wasn’t until the weekend that I found the ticket again, folded up in the inside pocket of my jacket.” He further shared that when he verified the numbers on his phone and saw the prize amount, he was completely stunned, feeling grateful he was seated as his knees would have buckled.
Despite being aware of the campaign initiated after the unclaimed winning ticket lingered for two months, he admitted to initially thinking, “How foolish not to claim it.” Reflecting on his disbelief, he stated, “It never occurred to me that I could be the person they were searching for.” When asked about his plans for the substantial winnings, he mentioned his intention to purchase a new sofa for the living room initially.
The man and his spouse disclosed that the remaining funds would be utilized to support their children. Opting to keep their massive win confidential, the millionaire couple emphasized they would not disclose the news to anyone else. Lotto spokesperson Martin Blach remarked, “Out of sight, out of mind – unbelievable, but that’s likely how it unfolded.”
In a reminiscent anecdote from 2013, a British couple became lottery millionaires after overlooking their numbers for three weeks. David Nelson, aged 77, and his wife Susan, aged 67, had left their winning £1 million ticket untouched in a drawer. Upon coming across an appeal for a missing EuroMillions Millionaire Raffle winner, the couple realized they were the ones being sought. David, a retired upholsterer, confessed, “I had simply stored it away safely for a few weeks, forgetting to check it at the time.”
He continued, “Then I decided to inspect my ticket at midnight one night upon learning there was an unclaimed winner. I was utterly shocked to discover it was the winning ticket. I woke up Susan to share the news. It’s incredible.” Susan added, “When David woke me up, I was thrilled. Neither of us managed to sleep that night until we could confirm the truth.”
