I was seconds away from losing ENTIRE £130k EuroMillions jackpot because of stupid mistake which left me shaking
A LOTTERY winner has told how he was seconds away from losing his entire £131,584 EuroMillions jackpot.
Care worker Ray Bowen, 61, from Basingstoke, Hampshire, told how an easy mistake left him shaking.
Distracted by a movie night with pals on Friday, August 30, the clock was fast approaching the 7.30pm deadline and Ray acted fast to enter the Lucky Dip.
He went to bed “without a second thought” before waking to a message on his account.
Calling the helpline he was told he was a winner.
“I couldn’t believe it and I felt a bit numb,” he said. “I then had the call and waited for everything to be processed. I was shaking.
Ray, who’s an avid collector of personal war medals, added that entering was “the best decision I’ve made in ages.”
After a meal to celebrate his newfound wealth Ray, a widower and carer to three grandchildren, revelled in his plans for a “trip of a lifetime” to Disney World Florida.
“I told the grandchildren, only this year, that I wanted to save up and take them on a trip of a lifetime.
“I also want to explore buying my house and have that security. I’m looking forward to enjoying not having to worry about bills.
“I already feel more relaxed about financial things and it feels good.”
Ray’s winning numbers, chosen via a Lucky Dip, were 3, 24, 27, 33, 42 and the Lucky Star numbers were 4 and 6.
It comes after a lottery player revealed how she missed out on a £100million prize after making a fatal error.
And a pensioner who won a EuroMillions cash prize is still relying on food banks and still hasn’t been given the money weeks later.
Meanwhile, a lucky couple thought they’d only bagged £3.60 on the lottery before discovering their £61million jackpot.
The Worst Lotto Losers
- Ali and Yousef Jaafar – £16million – Cashed in £14,000 tickets fraudulently
The pair were found guilty and were ordered to pay £4.7million in restitution and had to forfeit the winnings.
Ali was sentenced to five years in prison and Yousef was jailed for four.
- Ronnie Music Jr – £23.3million – Funded crystal meth ring
Ronnie invested his cash price into a drug trafficking ring.
In 2015, several of his co-conspirators were arrested after attempting to sell large quantities of meth allegedly supplied by him.
Ronnie was arrested not long after and was found to be in possession of meth and £17,000 in cash
He was later sentenced to 21 years in prison after police raided his home and found 11 firearms including a prohibited sawed-off shotgun.
- Willie Hurt – £2.8million – Charged with murder
His life spiralled after he bagged £2.8million jackpot in 1989.
He chose to receive the sum in £123,000 instalments every month for 20 years, but within a year he was hooked on cocaine and divorced.
He was charged with the murder of Wendy Kimmey at the Burkewood Inn.
Wendy was found dead with a bullet wound to the head.
Willie turned himself in to the authorities and was later sent for a psychiatric evaluation.
The verdict was never made public.
- Lee Ryan – £6.5million – Handling stolen goods
Lee Ryan was dubbed the “Lotto Lag” when he landed his jackpot while awaiting trial for handling stolen cars.
However, the Brit later admitted that the millions he won was a “curse”.
Two divorces and two years of sleeping rough followed.
Now the 62-year-old revealed he’s happily working as a painter and decorator.
- Michael Carroll aka King of Chavs – £9.7million – Dangerous driving, affray
The former refuse worker won £9.7million on the lotto and vowed to spend every penny of it.
Dubbing himself “King of Chavs”, Michael spent his winnings on drugs, booze, a six-bedroom house in Norfolk and even invested £1m in the Glasgow Rangers.
Since his win in 2002, he’s served three prison sentences and appeared in court more than 30 times for offences including dangerous driving and affray.
- Barry Shell – £2.5million – Theft
Barry was arrested in 2009 after a picture of him holding his £2.5million cheque tipped off the police.
A warrant for Shell’s arrest was issued after he failed to show up for court in 2003.
He later faced charges of failing to appear, theft under £3,000 and possession of property obtained by crime.
- Joshua Winslet – £13million – Supplying MDMA and possessing a firearm without a licence
After winning an incredible £13million in the lottery in 2017, aged 22, Aussie Joshua Winslet blew his fortune in just three years.
Joshua’s parents managed his winnings through a trust fund, but it didn’t stop his drug addiction.
Images released by South Australia’s District Court showed empty bottles of booze, bongs, bags of MDMA, cocaine and marijuana appeared to be littered around the bachelor pad.
28.3 grams of MDMA, 2.27g of cocaine and an unlicensed firearm were also seized.
The court heard how his arrest served as “a wake-up call” and he was sentenced to three years and nine months, with a non-parole period of 18 months.
The sentence was suspended on a two-year good behaviour bond, with supervision.