It was a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the grocery store for Creston’s Andre Robert, after he used the self-checker to scan a Lotto 6/49 ticket from the Dec. 23, 2020 draw and realized he was an ‘Extra’ $500,000 richer.

Robert, who purchased the winning ticket at Paul’s Superette, was at the grocery store when he remembered to check his ticket, and saw a number he wasn’t expecting.

“My first thought was something was wrong so I had the retailer check my ticket,” Robert recalled. “I think she was more surprised than me: The machined stopped.”

After he realized he’d matched four of four numbers to win the Extra’s top prize, he phoned his wife to share the amazing news.

“She said that her heart stopped literally beating,” Robert said.

Robert said he and his family celebrated with a small dinner at home and will plan a road trip to Arizona or California once it’s safe to travel again; he may also retire a few years earlier than expected.

“Prior to this, the largest prize I have ever won (was) $20,” he said. “I really can’t describe it since the feeling or the reality has not set in yet. I am not an excitable person but I still have to pinch myself to know that I’m not dreaming.”

In 2020, B.C. lottery players redeemed more than $106 million in winnings from Lotto 6/49.

Photo courtesy BCLC

BCLC 

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