Yellowknife resident Laura Tutcho has been revealed as the winner of the Northwest Territories’ largest-ever lottery jackpot.
Tutcho was the ticket-holder who scooped $55 million in May 1’s Lotto Max draw. According to NWT & Nunavut Lotteries, Tutcho said she was “beside myself” when she found out.
“It’s so exciting and overwhelming,” the lottery corporation quoted Tutcho as saying in a news release published on Monday.
According to the news release, Tutcho is originally from Délı̨nę and spent her career as a Sahtúgot’ı̨ne interpreter.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
Tutcho had waited for a month before claiming the money. She was the only person to match all seven main winning numbers in the May 1 draw. Her ticket was an $11 quick pick from the downtown Reddi Mart in Yellowknife.
“My granddaughter told me that someone in Yellowknife won the jackpot,” she told NWT & Nunavut Lotteries, “so I went on the internet to check the numbers.
“I was in shock! I said, ‘Oh, my God!’ My grandkids came in right away and my grandson asked, ‘Are you all right, Grandma?’
“I just kept looking at the ticket and looking back at the numbers. My granddaughter told me, ‘The numbers haven’t changed, Grandma!’”
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
According to the lottery corporation, Tutcho spent the weeks since the win working with financial advisors to make plans for the money.
Her priority is using the cash to help her family.
Winners of large sums in Canadian lotteries must agree to publicity of their win prior to collecting the cash. The Western Canada Lottery Corporation, NWT & Nunavut Lotteries’ parent, states this is to demonstrate the integrity of its games.
