WINNIPEG -- The winners of Manitoba’s largest lottery jackpot came forward Tuesday to claim the whopping $60-million Lotto Max prize.
On Tuesday, the Western Canada Lottery Corporation (WCLC) announced John Chua, his wife Jhoana Chua, mother Angie Chua and his uncle Ben Lagman, were the lucky ones to have the matching numbers for the massive prize.
This is the largest lottery win in Manitoba history and at first John said he didn’t realize he had actually won.
He said he bought the ticket online on Play Now. On the morning when the winning ticket was announced, he checked his account and said he didn't see anything saying he had won.
But that soon changed when he got an email later in the day from Play Now.
"I thought it might be a Free Play or something. But it said $60 million—I was confused, so I checked on PlayNow.com when I got home," John said as quoted in a news release from the WCLC.
He said when he got home and checked, it was saying he had won and he added he had missed it in the morning.
The online ticket, which had the numbers 11, 21, 23, 25, 28, 41 and 43, is the largest winning ticket purchased online in Canada.
The rest of the Chua family was just as shocked as he was about winning, with Angie saying she didn't believe her son at first.
“He always plays jokes – he’s a joker, so I didn’t believe it,” Angie recalled her son telling her their family was about to be multi-millionaires.
The family said they are not sure yet what they are going to do with the money but John said he is going to be wise with the money.
"I just want to take the time and do the smart thing."
The previous record for a Lotto Max win in Manitoba was $50 million back in 2009. The previous record for a Winnipeg win was $27.2 million with a Lotto 6/49 in 2005.
