Educational Psychologist Wins 333 Million Rubles in New Year Lottery
Natalia Lokhmatova, an educational psychologist from Sverdlovsk Region, won 333,333,333 rubles (approximately $3.3 million at current rates) in a lottery. On the 31st draw, in one of the fields on her ticket, all 15 numbers matched the drawn barrels, and Natalia was among the winners who split the main prize of the New Year draw.
The draw took place on January 1, but during the holidays, none of the winners came forward for the money. The lottery organizers assumed that the lucky winners were simply not yet aware of their fortune. So far, only the woman from Sverdlovsk has claimed the prize. She shared her impressions of the win with representatives of Stoloto.
«On the 25th day of the 25th year — on this interesting date — I had a premonition that I would win a large sum! Moreover, I have a green thumb: everything I plant in the ground always sprouts very quickly. I think that on the day I bought the tickets, everything came together: the interesting date, the premonition, and the green thumb,» Natalia recounts.
Natalia is an educational psychologist by training. Currently, she is on maternity leave with her two-year-old son. Their family has a tradition of participating in lotteries, especially for the New Year. The tickets she chose had eights. This number is lucky for them, as it is the birthdays of Natalia, her son, and her mother.
«When I saw the amount on my phone, I thought to myself, »Pinch me!« I immediately told my husband about the win. He was stunned and said it was a system error. I immediately started rewatching the draw broadcast online, and when they announced that Sverdlovsk Region had won a third of a billion, then I realized that the lucky winner was me. There was a storm of emotions! Only the next day did calm come, and I immediately started thinking with my husband about where to spend the money,» says Natalia.
The tax on the winnings will be 71,735,333 rubles (about $717,000). After deduction, the winner will receive 261,598,000 rubles (approximately $2.6 million), if this is the only win for the tax period or other taxable income. The tax payment is handled by the organizer — the woman from Sverdlovsk will receive the amount already net of the payment.
«Life will change drastically this year! There are many other plans for the winnings: I want to buy a car, an apartment, secure my son»s future, and help relatives,« shares the winner.
In her youth, Natalia actively participated in creative competitions and tourist hikes. She was also fond of rock climbing, hand-to-hand combat, and parachuting. Now Natalia has switched to more down-to-earth matters: she is raising her son and engaging in cooking.
Sverdlovsk Region this year topped the ranking of the luckiest regions by total winnings in the New Year draw of «Russian Lotto». Meanwhile, a journalist from E1.RU bought more than a dozen lottery tickets to test her luck. Read, what came of it.
The first time with a 300-ruble ticket we didn«t win anything, and in the second attempt we managed to recoup the cost of two out of three tickets. The third time we tried to get rich by buying lottery tickets online, but also ended up with nothing. A couple of weeks ago we tried to win in the New Year lottery, but no miracle occurred.
