SHEFFIELD, England — A British postal worker said his marriage ended and he has become a laughing stock at work because he threw away a $153,000 scratch-off lottery ticket.
Cemal Celikkanat, 38, a driver for the Royal Mail, said he thought the dollar amounts on the scratch-off card he purchased at Charnock News and Booze in Sheffield had to be in a row to win, but the card pays out for any three-of-a-kind dollar amounts, the Sheffield Telegraph reported Friday.
"When I found out I felt dizzy and dropped to my knees — it was like being hit over the head. I threw away £100,000 ($153,000)," he said. "I feel so terrible, I think about it every day, it's had a massive impact on my life."
He said he tried to retrieve the ticket from the trash at the convenience store but was told it had already been sent to an incinerator.
"I have left my wife — we were having financial difficulties and this was the final straw. My colleagues tease me saying I must be rich because I can afford to throw away a fortune," he said. "When I bought my first scratch card six years ago you had to have three in a row to win. I assumed that applied to all the games I've played since then — I can't bear to think about how much money I've thrown away."
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A Fool and His Money departs"
ridge runner reads this he will be so happy it happen to a postal worker..He can be so mean at times..
Had he not mentioned his foolishness, no one would know. Sounds like he's telling his story hoping the lottery will investigate if such an incident as he claimed could have happened and reward him the money if it could have.
I wouldn't have said anything but since you bring it up he's probably just dealing with bad Karma for all the cash he's taken from little kids' birthday cards. Mailmen can be really evil.
This is sad and will affect him for the rest of his life unless he moves away and starts his life over.
This sounds like a storyteller? I heard lot's of "could of beens" from many clerks at various stores.
If the ticket was fire bombed, then no ticket will be found and end of story.
It could be even more interesting if one of his fellow mailmen cashes in the ticket.
Would a mailman do that to his buddy though?... heh, heh, heh... What do you think?
to answer your question....in todays world i think his buddy would....he just gotta wait for the story to die down before he cash it in....
Britains got some expensive garbage.
Check and Double Check All Tickets Before Throwing Them Away: If You Throw Away a Winner: You'll Never Hear the End of It!
It must suck to throw away something that is worth so much money. It's a hard lesson to learn. Always make sure you read the rules of the game and check your tickets thoroughly. Especially, when it comes to scratch off tickets. There are many different types of scratch off games and they can be won is so many different ways.
Who knows, this man may get a second, even bigger WIN as soon as he flips his frame-of-mind to RESPECTING games rules!
Not tiggs he's the most honest retired amilman alive bar none..But if it was ridge's he would have to think about it..not think to hard but think..