An Altona man has become Victoria’s biggest ever lottery winner by taking home the entire $80 million jackpot in Thursday’s Powerball draw.
“Oh my god! Are you joking?!” the retiree cried when officials from The Lott contacted him straight after the draw at 8.30pm on 12 February.
“I can’t believe it! Oh my god! I can’t stop crying!”
The man initially didn’t answer his phone and thanks to its message bank being full, officials couldn’t leave a voicemail either.
“I was in the study, and my phone was in the bedroom,” he said.
“I then came back to my phone and saw I had so many missed calls!”
Even after finally getting in touch with the officials, the enormity of the news they delivered meant the man didn’t believe them.
It was only after checking his own ticket online that he came around to his new (and much wealthier) reality.
“If you’ve got good news for me then it couldn’t have come at a better time,” he said.
“My family has been through a rough trot lately and this is just the best news.
“You have no idea how much this means to me.
“I’ve never won anything in my life, let alone $80 million!”
When asked how he planned to enjoy his multi-million-dollar win, the man shared his plans to getaway and enjoy some ‘peace and quiet’.
“I haven’t been to Italy since I’ve been 10 years old, and I have wanted to go back ever since.
“You have changed my life.”
