Rinze Kiljan’s decision to say ‘yes’ to the Extra paid off to the tune of $500,000 in the May 13, 2015 Lotto 6/49 draw, according to a British Columbia Lottery Corporation news release.
The Abbotsford resident has been playing Lotto 6/49 for years and since he is recently retired, Kiljan says he tends to only purchase tickets with big jackpots. Despite opting to play on the big jackpots, Kiljan admits he never thought he would win big.
“As I was checking my ticket at the grocery store, my wife was at the cashier in the check-out line discussing how we often play the lottery but we never win,” said Kiljan.
The reality of winning $500,000 is yet to sink in for Kiljan who said he could not believe his eyes when he saw he had matched all four numbers of the Lotto 6/49 Extra draw to win the top prize.
“When I saw it, I said to myself: this can’t be true! I had to check my ticket multiple times to believe it, and now here I am almost a month later and the big win continues to feel surreal,” said Kiljan.
Kiljan is currently planning a trip to Europe with his winnings and says he will also share the wealth with his family.
The winning ticket was purchased at Save-On-Foods in Abbotsford.