Daily Sun (May 2 2013) - JOHANNES should be living the life of a stinking rich millionaire, but instead the unemployed man is living the life of a penniless beggar! He lost the winning ticket - and only found it months later - but a Gidani official told him the ticket was invalid. NOW JOHANNES IS READY TO KILL HIMSELF IF GIDANI DOESN'T PAY HIM HIS FORTUNE!

Johannes Sebothoma (49) of Kgobokwane in Limpopo showed Daily Sun a fading photocopy of the ticket. It is almost impossible to see the Lotto logo but the numbers, and the barcode are still visible and Johannes believes that Gidani, the Lotto operator, or an employee at Gidani has cheated him of his money. Johannes said that after losing the ticket on 29 April 2009, his heart ached every time he read in newspapers that the jackpot still hadn't been claimed and that there was only one winning ticket.

"I found the ticket two days before the jackpot expired in the pocket of my jacket," he said. "It was slightly crushed and discoloured but the numbers 2-30-38-41-43-45 and the barcode were still visible. I rushed to the Gidani offices in Midrand the next day, and officials confirmed that I indeed possessed the winning ticket."

But Johannes' happiness soon turned to heartache. Another Gidani official allegedly told him that his ticket was invalid. "The official wouldn't give me back my ticket. He gave me a photocopy." For four years, Johannes has been battling with Gidani, but they keep telling him that the jackpot has already been claimed...

See the Daily Sun mobi site for more on this and other stories....

The Daily Sun is South Africa's largest daily newspaper with an average circulation of 330 000 and a readership of 5.7m (as per AMPS 2012ab). Its Facebook page can be accessed here. It can be followed on Twitter here. To find about advertising on the Daily Sun click here.

Issued through the Politicsweb iService