Winner of largest Lotto jackpot in B.C. history to remain anonymous.
The winning ticket in the record $30-million April 25 draw was purchased at the IGA grocery store on Parkway Boulevard in Coquitlam.
You won’t, however, be seeing the customary photo of the lucky person posing with a giant novelty cheque.
The winner asked that their name not be made public. The BCLC — despite having a policy that requires all winners to agree to have their name, photo and hometown published — said it granted the request following an investigation that included consulting with independent third-party sources.
“Based on this investigation, BCLC has made the rare decision to grant the winner’s request for anonymity. BCLC grants anonymity on a case-by-case basis, as every situation is unique. The circumstances must be extraordinary and substantiated with evidence that is verifiable and capable of independent confirmation,” the BCLC said in a release.
This is the fourth time in three years that the BCLC has granted a lotto winner anonymity, but the other prizes were all less than $100,000.
The BCLC would not comment on the specifics of the latest privacy request or if it related to concerns about personal safety.
According the lottery corporation’s posted policy, a winner may request privacy and “the BCLC, in its sole discretion, will determine whether the basis of the request, such as a serious threat to a winner’s safety, is well founded.”
It’s not the first time a winner has tried to avoid the limelight that comes with being an instant millionaire. In 2014, Langley’s Friedrich and Annand Mayrhofer, who won a $50-million Lotto Max jackpot, tried to remain anonymous by having a lawyer claim their ticket for a family trust, but that move was rejected by the BCLC.
The Mayrhofers may have had good reason to stay unknown. Earlier this year, their names were fraudulently used in an email scam that was circulating as far as Florida.
People who received the scam email were told that the Mayrhofers were giving way their remaining fortune in exchange for a cellphone number, address and a scanned copy of a passport or driver’s licence, so “we can forward your details to the payout bank.”
In March, a New Hampshire judge ruled that a woman who won a $560-million U.S. Powerball lottery prize would be allowed to remain anonymous.
The woman argued that disclosing her identity “would constitute a significant invasion of her privacy.”
The lawsuit said previous winners have been “victims of violence, threats, harassment, scams and constant unwanted solicitation.”
