May 26, 2023
MONCTON (N.B.) – Every week, Julio Roy of Acadieville, N.B. commutes more than two hours to Saint John for work and then returns home on the weekends to be with his family.
All of that is about to change since Roy took home the $5-million Lotto 6/49 Classic Jackpot from the May 20, 2023 draw. Thanks to the big win, he intends on taking at least a year off from his work as a mechanic while he decides what comes next.
“I’ll take a year off, maybe take a different direction, maybe start my own business,” Roy said. “Maybe work on my own schedule.”
Roy and his wife Sacha have two young children and are thrilled that he will now be able to spend more time at home. The couple also plans to pay off their mortgage and invest for their future and Roy thinks he will finally pursue his lifelong dream of getting a pilot’s licence.
The winning ticket was purchased during a stop at a busy gas station, Roy said.
“I was at the gas station and somebody backed up and took my spot and all the others were full, so I parked to the side to wait and when it emptied, I got my fuel and went in to pay for it and thought I’d get two tickets.”
The $5-million prize drew lots of attention over the long weekend after Saturday night’s draw, but Roy hadn’t heard the news.
“I went to gas up again, getting ready to go to work tonight, and scanned my ticket and saw it said ‘major winner,’ so I went to the clerk and asked him to check it,” Roy said. “He punched it in and they didn’t seem to know what was going on, so I said, ‘Did I win 50 bucks or what?’ He didn’t say anything, so I said ‘What, millionaire?’ Then he showed me the ticket and I was like, ‘That’s $5 million. I’m a millionaire.’”
Lotto 6/49 draws take place every Wednesday and Saturday with two multi-million jackpots available to be won. The Classic Jackpot is always set at $5 million and the Gold Ball Jackpot starts at $10 million and can grow past $60 million. Roy took home his $5-million prize thanks to the classic jackpot. A Gold Ball Jackpot prize worth $64 million sold in Gloucester County, N.B. for the April 15, 2023 remains unclaimed.
Roy purchased his winning Lotto 6/49 ticket at Needs on Marr Road in Rothesay, N.B. The retailer will receive a one per cent seller’s prize.
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Media contact:
Lindsay Meekins
Atlantic Lottery Public Relations Strategist
506-431-6466
lindsay.meekins@alc.ca
Backgrounder: About Lotto 6/49