€8.2m Lotto ticket saga 'has been resolved'
The recent saga regarding a €8.2m Lotto win appears to be almost at an end, according to an RTÉ report today.
Reports first emerged on Wednesday that the National Lottery was refusing to pay out a multi-million euro jackpot to someone claiming to be the winner.
Speaking on RTÉ's News at One today, Tony McLynn, a solicitor representing the winner, said a matter of clarification was sought and the issue has now been resolved.
“Everybody’s happy now,” he said. “The matter has been resolved, and the PLI [Premier Lotteries Ireland], the licence operator, has confirmed that appropriate interest along with the principal, will be paid in due course.
“So it’s a good outcome, everybody’s happy.”
He said that the winnings have not yet been transferred but that "the logistics of that just have to be sorted out, but that’s in hand".
He refused to confirm any of the rumours regarding the cause of the delay, stating: “There was a matter of clarification sought and that was resolved.”
He added: “My client has instructed me to address the matter publically purely on the basis that there has been a lot of inaccurate stories circulating, particularly in the last few days, but certainly over the past few weeks.
“They don’t’ wish me to overstate the matter. They’re happy all matters have been resolved and there’s a good outcome.
He added: “We’re in a society, in a world where most people would wish the winner good luck for the future, but there are security concerns and safety issues that need to be considered as well.”
According to Mr McLynn, it was the perception of his client would be that the PLI “should have maybe adopted amore discreet response when initial enquiries were made by the media”.
A previous statement released by the National Lottery stated: “The National Lottery never comments on the specifics of the claims procedure to protect both the privacy of the claimant and the security of the National Lottery’s claims process.
“As is standard practice, any claimant has 90 days in which to claim their prize and we are continuing to engage with the ticketholder.
“In line with our normal policy, we will not be issuing further comment until the prize has been collected.”
The winning ticket was purchased at the Stop and Shop outlet on Stephen Street, Sligo on March 5.
