But for some who won the jackpot, their millions became a curse beyond their wildest nightmares, leading to downward spirals, poverty and even death. And while many enjoy the lifestyle that the rest of us can only dream of, research has shown that 70 percent of lottery winners end up in bankruptcy with a third declaring bankruptcy. Basil Thorne (photo) from Sydney won .000 100,000 in a Sydney Opera House lottery in 1960, which equates to $ 1.7 million today. Tragically, Graeme’s son was abducted and killed Graeme Thorne was kidnapped for a ransom of $ 43,000 after his father won the lottery. He was killed the same day The fall tends to follow a clear pattern. The joy of victory and the commitment to be careful and help others recede as the temptation of the endless amount of money becomes too great to resist. It is usually caused by itself. Most winners start spending so quickly – on everything from drugs, alcohol and sex to ill-conceived investments – that millions are evaporating. A 23-year-old Perth man, Sheriff Girkis, was working part-time in a movie theater in 2007 when he made $ 30 million – the biggest lotto win in Western Australian history. Mr. Girgis made a number of investments under the guidance of real estate agent and city deputy mayor Joondalup Russell Poliwka. Sherif Girgis, 23, was part-time working in a Perth cinema when he scored the biggest lottery in Western Australia history in 2007. Buy a pub, a club called Crush, an 80-foot catamaran for $ 880,000, and a block of land overlooking the sea. The investment package was later found to be overvalued. Although his ventures began to lose money and by 2012 he had only $ 5 million left. In 2014, a lawsuit was filed against Poliwka, demanding almost $ 3.5 million. He was awarded $ 2 million. The court accepted that Poliwka provided “misleading or misleading performance” and “negligent advice”. Mr. Girgis made a series of investments under the guidance of the real estate agent and deputy mayor of the city Joondalup Russell Poliwka (photo) Lottery wins can also badly affect the winner’s judgment. The newlywed man from Kiwi, Trevor Cooper, who worked in a supermarket before earning $ 27 million in 2012, sadly divorced in 2015. Mr Cooper, who went from pricing other people’s grocery items to getting into his new expensive off-road cars for a cash prize, went so far as to buy the mansion in South Auckland where he got married. He also quickly bought 12 properties, mostly with his new wife, Sharie Mitchell – before the marriage broke down and he had a fight with his mother, Shirley. She told the NZ Herald that her son did not make a prenuptial agreement with his new wife, Mrs. Mitchell. Sometimes the misfortune of winning the lottery is caused by the jealousy and greed of family, friends or even strangers. The saddest case in Australia, and the one that changed the rules for announcing the lottery winners, involved the death of an eight-year-old boy from Sydney, Graham Thorne. He was ransomed for 25 25,000 after Basil Thorne’s father won .000 100,000 in a Sydney Opera House lottery in 1960, which equates to $ 1.7 million today. The kidnapper, Stephen Bradley, a Hungarian immigrant and worker at a poker machine factory, dragged Graeme into his car and then tied him to the boot. He panicked when he opened the trunk and found the boy unconscious. He hit him, then wrapped his body in a rug and threw it on an empty plot in Seaforth. Kevin and Tania Parkes (photo) were very happy when they won the Powerball – along with 248 others Mr Ing (pictured) claims to have bought a ticket to the winning Powerball Syndicate in February Police were slow to locate Bradley after finding the carpet maker and recognizing one of his dog’s hairs inside. Police later said Graham Thorne may have died within 24 hours of the abduction, suffocation, skull fracture or a combination of both. Bradley was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. He died in Goulburn Prison in 1968. In the Thorne case, lottery winners in Australia can request anonymity. But that did not help Tamworth’s Maria Devrell, who was killed by a family friend who chose to help her manage her $ 5 million’s OzLotto victory in 2011. Trevor Cooper (center photo), who worked in a supermarket before earning $ 27 million in 2012, was newly married and then divorced in 2015. He did not sign a prenuptial agreement with his wife One of the most expensive off-record vehicles, Mr Cooper started racing when he quit his job at the supermarket after earning $ 26 million She was killed in a fight with Peter Kelly, a financial adviser and friend of Ms. Devrell and her husband, David, for 25 years over failed real estate investments in Fiji and the NSW Central Coast. Outraged by what she thought was her mismanagement of her profits, Kelly hit her with a plastic rubber mallet and then strangled her at her home. She was found by police to have attempted suicide and found guilty of her murder, after which she was sentenced to 18 years in prison. Tamworth’s Maria Devrell was killed by a family friend she chose to help her manage her $ 5 million 2011 OzLotto victory Kelly later told police he was “bored” of hearing Mrs. Devrell, who was addicted to gambling, “complaining and blaming everyone. [else] for its problems “. After the murder of his friend, Kelly indecently spent a weekend away with her husband, who knew nothing about her death. A Sydney traditionalist, who wished to remain anonymous after winning the $ 30 million Powerball in 2020, warned that the huge victory made his life easier but not happier. After a week of 14-hour shifts at a local website, he drank a few beers and checked his ticket to find out he had won the $ 30 million prize. His experience was that as soon as the word circulated around his family and circle of friends, he had a lot of “weird” conversations with people who “got out of carpentry”. People who had lost contact with him 15 years ago suddenly wanted to be friends again. At least one relationship was broken, with an ex-boyfriend saying “he did not get it right”. “If you are not happy and you want to win the lottery (to change that) you will make a terrible mistake,” he told news.com.au.
The incredible fortune of the Melbourne man
Melbourne’s Bill Morgan overcame a near-fatal heart attack and 15 days in a coma before winning the lottery not once but twice. A year after his death, he made $ 30,000 with an instant scratch in 1999, then when a TV cameraman asked him to scratch another for a video during a story about his good fortune, he incredibly won again. The second time it was $ 250,000 – today it’s worth $ 440,000. Mr Morgan collapsed in front of astonished spectators. Bill Morgan holds the winning ticket high after winning $ 250,000 in May 1999. Less than 12 months earlier he was clinically dead and then in a coma after a massive heart attack (illuminated by his wife Lisa Wells after they were engaged a few weeks ago) Morgan continued to have heart problems, developed chronic arthritis in his 50s and saw his nephew and brother-in-law die young. But he was grateful for his incredible luck.
The most recent public lottery case returns to Perth court in August.
Two newsagents that organized tickets for a huge victory of the $ 63 million Powerball Syndicate are disputing a man’s claim for a share of $ 262,000.
A man known as “Mr Ing” claims to have bought a ticket to Tanya and Kevin Parkes’ Powerball union “pay off your mortgage” in February 2022.
But they claim that they sold him a ticket to a different union, which was not successful.
The Parkes have filed a lawsuit to prevent Lotterywest from transferring the profits it claimed.
Disputes over trade unions are not uncommon.
In 2010, the friendship of three Melbourne partners who won a $ 13 million lottery broke down when they could not agree on how to separate it.
Eugene Te Pairi, Garry Garlick and Brad Pretty ended up in court, where they paid $ 1.5 million in legal fees, after the collapse of their original agreement.
After the American Andrew ‘Jack’ Whittaker (pictured right) made a staggering $ 315 million in Powerball in 2002, his life fell into one disaster after another. Among his many afflictions, Brady’s granddaughter (pictured left) died of drugs in her system
The three raised $ 340 for a party at Mr Pretty’s house in Carrum, near Frankston in 2010, from which they cut $ 26 into a quick-select ticket.
Mr Te Pairi and Mr Garlick claimed Mr Pretty had received the award but refused to pay them what was agreed.
The trio was finally settled out of court.
Mr. Te Pairi and Mr Pretty were friends for 20 years before victory destroyed their friendship.
In the US, Florida worker Abraham Shakespeare (center photo) earned $ 30 million in 2006 at the age of 40
Abraham was shot and killed three years later by a woman who befriended him, Di Di Moore (photo)
The lottery winners in America also had similar fortunes to those in Australia.
After the American Andrew ‘Jack’ Whittaker made an incredible $ 315 million in Powerball in 2002, his life ended in one disaster after another.
He has pledged more than $ 10 million to Christian charities, and has set up a foundation to feed and house low-income families.
But he also bought a Lamborghini and crossed his neighborhood throwing cash punches at passers-by.
The $ 700,000 in cash he left in his car was stolen. He turned to gambling and strip clubs and both his daughter and granddaughter died, the latter with a serious drug problem.
In 2016 his house burned down. He was uninsured. He died three years later after a long battle with cancer.
In the United States, Florida-based worker Abraham Shakespeare earned $ 30 million in 2006 at the age of 40 and was shot three years later by a woman who befriended him, Di Di Moore.
