Couple Realize They’ve Won $3.4 Million After Leaving Lottery Ticket on a Desk for 7 Weeks: ‘I Had No Idea’ – AOL

NEED TO KNOW

• An Australian couple unknowingly held a $3.4 million winning lottery ticket for seven weeks before checking it

• The pair will receive over $14,200 monthly for 20 years after winning the Set For Life jackpot

• The woman, who had only played the lottery for six months, called the win “a dream come true” and shared that they now hope to retire

An Australian couple spent almost two months going about their usual routine without realizing they had won a lottery prize of $3.4 million. 

The lucky ticket was left on a desk in their Sydney home for seven weeks before they decided to check whether they had won, according to Australian outlet 7NEWS.

The pair held the only division one entry for the Set For Life jackpot, which was drawn on July 1, meaning they won $4.8 million, the equivalent of $3.4 million in the U.S.

They will now receive over $14,200 (U.S.) a month for the next two decades.

“I’m all shaken up at the moment,” the woman told The Lott, per 7NEWS. “I can’t believe it. I had no idea. This ticket has just been sitting on my desk at home the whole time.”

“I kept saying, ‘I’ve got to go check this ticket’ … and today we did,” she said. 

The woman said she had only been playing Set For Life for six months but had a feeling they were going to win big. 

The lucky winner described the prize as “literally a dream come true” and said she and her partner were thinking of retiring after working hard “all our lives.”

“This has changed our lives. You’ve no idea what this means to us. Things like this just don’t happen to people like us,” the unnamed woman told The Lott, per 7 the outlet. “This is seriously the best call I’ve ever had.”

The ticket was purchased at a Nextra Kiama convenience store, which has also previously sold another winning ticket with the same prize of $3.4 million. It has been unclaimed since November 2024, according to Australian outlet news.com.au. 

This win comes as a brother and sister who moved to Canada for a better life claimed a $52 million jackpot (or $75 million Canadian).

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The siblings, identified as Jonathan R. and Mylene P., had played the lottery together for nearly two years and always chose numbers that held meaning to them, Ontario residents told lottery officials.

At first, Jonathan thought they won $52,000, (or $75,000 Canadian), but after putting on his glasses, he realized the jackpot was much bigger than anticipated.

If you or someone you know is struggling with a gambling problem, please contact the National Problem Gambling Helpline Network at 1-800-522-4700 or go to gamtalk.org.

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