Six months ago when Kamla Bookal decided to give up her doubles business and sell lotto tickets, instead she never expected to strike lotto luck. However, on Wednesday Bookal sold a $20.4 million winning ticket from her humble parlour, located off the M2 Ring Road, Ste Madeleine. Bookal, who is camera shy, said she was flabbergasted when she heard from the National Lotteries Control Board she shad old the winning ticket. “I didn’t believe it. I said to myself that it could not be my shop they were talking about,” Bookal said. She said on Wednesday, her shop had a heavy streamline of eager Lotto players.
Bookal did not know who bought the ticket. “So many people came here yesterday so I really don’t know,” Bookal said. She added that two police officers who came to her shop subsequently said it was a young man who bought a single Quik Pick and won the $20.4 million jackpot. Bookal said it felt good for a new lotto dealer to sell the winning ticket. She added: “This is a great incentive. I have never gambled but it feels good to know that someone in South won. I think that it is a blessing for someone to win the lotto.”
She advised the winner to give to charity. She also said all her life people told her she was lucky. “I know this is true because when I stopped selling doubles, I started to sell Lotto tickets instead. At first it was hard but now I make almost the same amount as I did when I was selling doubles and I don’t have to be in the heated kitchen all the time.”
Bookal is expected to get an incentive prize from the National Lotteries Control Board.
On Wednesday the NLCB announced that one person won the ticket. The winning numbers were: 3, 15, 19, 25, 32 Powerball: 9.
Three winners who picked five numbers without the powerball each won $36,590.48.