N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
According to a news release from Atlantic Lottery, Merel Chiasson from Bas-Caraquet won $64 million from Lotto 6/49 on Thursday, claiming the massive prize only 19 days before it was due to expire.
The winning Gold Ball Jackpot was drawn on April 15, 2023, but Chiasson didn’t expect he was the winner, keeping his ticket with a collection of others at home.
“I’ve always done it like that and I never thought I would win big, so I leave the tickets there and didn’t worry too much about it,” he said in the release.
Atlantic Lottery recently filmed a commercial in the Gloucester County area featuring a golden town crier urging people to check their tickets.
“We didn’t give up hope that we were going to be able to meet them," Molly Cormier, director of brand and communications with Atlantic Lottery, told CTV News Atlantic. "We put out public awareness. We were constantly trying to remind the public to check their tickets. We’re just so over the moon excited that it’s concluded in this way."
If Chiasson hadn't collected the prize, the money would have gone back into Atlantic Lottery's prize pool.
Atlantic Lottery players buying tickets at a Kiosk at CF Champlain mall were amazed by the story.
“I don’t know how he felt, but I would cry my eyes out. I would have balled and just fell to my knees,” said Rene Legere.
Rob Anston thinks luck was on Chiasson’s side.
“I think he’s probably lucky twice in his life,” said Anston. “The other big question on my mind is how much interest did he lose in one year?”
Murielle Gagne-Ouellette would think of her family first if she had won $64 million, but perhaps not right away.
“First of all, I’d hide, but then after that, well of course the family would receive some chunks, but also I would open a foundation. A foundation either for children or for low-income housing for people,” said Gagne-Ouellette.
Chiasson, a crab fisherman for 40 years, said he’ll use the money to fully retire and help out his family.
“I don’t want anything big,” he said. “It’s not going to change me, I’m still the same person.”
For more New Brunswick news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING 3 injured after man with knife enters Montreal-area mosque
Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.
Teen arrested in New Brunswick after emergency alert; 5 people in custody
A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.
Police arrest 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole Porsche and ran over its owner
Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.
Woman nearly shut out of mother's estate sues brother in B.C. Supreme Court – and wins
Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.
'We're still pushing hard': Search for missing Manitoba boy continues, RCMP find tracks
The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.
11-year-old boy dies after subway surfing in NYC
An 11-year-old boy died Monday after subway surfing in New York City. He's the fourth person to die from subway surfing in the city this year.
On the trail of the mystery woman whose company licensed exploding pagers
What Cristiana Barsony-Arcidiacono, 49, the Italian-Hungarian CEO and owner of Hungary-based BAC Consulting, says she hasn't done is make the exploding pagers that killed 12 people and wounded more than 2,000 in Lebanon this week.
Top Hezbollah commander among 12 killed in Israeli strike on Beirut
Israel killed a top Hezbollah commander and other senior figures in the Lebanese movement in an airstrike on Beirut on Friday, vowing to press on with a new military campaign until it is able to secure the area around the Lebanese border.
'A fake, a phony and a fraud': Heated exchange between Pierre Poilievre, Jagmeet Singh
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh got into a heated exchange in the House of Commons on Thursday, just minutes after Singh announced his party would not be supporting the Conservatives' first non-confidence motion against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government.