GROUP OF 24 SHARE $24 MILLION
IMMIGRATION CANADA CO-WORKERS CELEBRATE LOTTO 6/49 JACKPOT WIN
June 17, 2009
Monday, June 15, 2009 is not a day Avelino Da-Silva will soon forget. It was on this day, he shared the good news with 23 of his co-workers that they had all become millionaires overnight. The group of 24 co-workers from Immigration Canada in Toronto, picked up $24,202,160.00 from Saturday's LOTTO 6/49 June 13 draw. When asked how the news was shared with the all the group members, Da-Silva, the group leader, told OLG staff that he asked his manager (who is part of the group), to send out an email. The subject line in the email read "Staff Budget and Travel emergency meeting" When they opened their emails, it informed them there was going to be a change in their financial forecast for the year.
Da-Silva checked the ticket using an OLG self ticket checker. "I had four tickets to check, the first ticket won $10 'not bad I thought' then the second ticket I checked showed just over $24 MILLION! I couldn't believe my eyes. I was so happy I forgot to check the remaining two tickets"! Da-Silva told staff at the OLG Toronto Prize Centre, when the group collected their prize cheque of just over $24 MILLION today.
The groups' individual plans for their share of the windfall include sharing with family, traveling, paying off mortgages and debts.
The winning ticket was purchased at Sobeys at Yonge and St. Clair Ave. E. in Toronto.
