Young father who lost his job amid pandemic wins $5.8 million lottery

Guwahati: A former security guard from Australia's Perth who lost his job like thousands of others due to the pandemic came into luck after winning a $5.8 million Oz Lotto's latest division lottery.

The man was out buying groceries for his three-year-old daughter when he spotted the Lotterywest sign and decided to try his luck and purchased a ticket.

When the newsagent informed him about the news of a mystery winner who hadn't come forward yet to claim their winnings, he checked the ticket and realized he was the mystery winner himself.

The young man was surprised and told the Lotterywest officials that he just wanted to go back home and hug his daughter.

He said, "I always say that life could be a dream, and this certainly feels like one. I'm always reading the news about Lotto winners and never thought it could be me."

The winner is from Armadale in Perth's outskirts and has already drawn plans about how to spend his money. His first stop will be his brother to tell him about the money.

The young man said his brother was undergoing some financial difficulties. "I really look up to him and he's been struggling to find the finances to buy a house but I'm going to buy him a whole house now," he added.

The unnamed man said he might go back to school and get his degree. "I'm also going to go back to school and finish my commerce degree and learn how to manage my money. My mum will be getting a new car and I'll buy myself a house and also set up my kids," Mail Online quoted the man as saying.

The winning ticket was reportedly purchased at Canning Vale Newsagency in Perth's south.

The newsagent shared on Facebook, 'We did it WA! One of our lucky customers will go home with $5.8 million after winning division one in last night's Oz Lotto draw! We'd like to thank all of our loyal customers for their support and congratulate the lucky winner!'

The young father was one of the two division one winners from Tuesday night's draw with the other winning ticket bought from Brisbane.

This is the the largest lottery win in Western Australia in almost two years. The last winning prize was $10 million Oz Lotto win in Albany in October, 2018.

Lotterywest spokeswoman Hermione Coleman said interviewing winners and hearing their stories was a highpoint of her job. "Another highlight is knowing that all profit raised from Lotterywest tickets goes into the COVID-19 Relief Fund, which is helping the WA community at a time when so many people are doing it tough," she further added.

While the man may have lost his job, it seems that God had other plans for him. As the saying goes, when God closes one door, he opens another.