Cape Town – The first Lotto jackpot winner in 2020 has yet to come forward to claim the more than R13 million prize.
The winning ticket for the Wednesday, January 8 draw was purchased at the Super Spar at Atlas Mall in Boksburg, Gauteng.
The national lottery operator, Ithuba, has encouraged all players who recently visited the Atlas Mall to check their tickets to see if they have won a staggering R13 835 362.40.
The winner spent R20 on the winning ticket, using a quick-pick selection method. The winning numbers were 14, 19, 21, 43, 45 and 50, and the bonus ball was 37.
“We hope that the winner will make contact with us soon. We encourage all players, especially players from the east of Johannesburg who recently visited the Atlas Mall, to check their tickets.
"Once we have validated the winning ticket, our first step is to offer the winner free trauma counselling and financial advice.
"Becoming an overnight millionaire can be an overwhelming experience to anyone. Our priority is to help the winner digest the news and enjoy every step of this life changing win," Ithuba said.
“The financial advice sessions are to ensure that our winners become financially educated and secure for years to come and that they make the right financial choices.
"Like the rest of the country, we were shocked to learn about a R14 million jackpot winner on a popular television show who lost all her winnings within months – this was just before we took over as the new Operator in June 2015.
"It is for this reason that we are adamant in offering all our winners of R50 000 and above with financial advice and trauma counselling,” said Busisiwe Msizi, the head of corporate relations at Ithuba.