Manitoba man gets $10-million winning lottery ticket in August, realizes in December

A man from Hamiota, Man., has been a $10-million lottery winner since summer, and only realized it a few weeks ago.

Jeff Morton, 64, scored a lucky Free Play ticket from a previous draw. The winning ticket sat on a shelf in his home for months before he eventually noticed he won the prize.

“I heard on the radio not too long ago that there was an unclaimed $10-million winning ticket purchased somewhere in Manitoba,” said Morton. “But I never thought that I was that winner, so I didn’t rush to check my tickets.”

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Morton was in disbelief right up until he went to redeem his ticket.

“I think I held it together pretty well in the store,” he said. “All I could say in the store was, ‘I hope that number one is in the right spot!'”

Aside from paying off some bills, Morton doesn’t have any big plans for spending the money just yet.

“I think I’ll keep working for the next little bit,” he said. “But just for a little while. I’d like to retire before I turn 65 next summer.”