A Pretoria woman won the lottery.
- A 28-year-old call centre agent from Pretoria has won R72 million.
- The win – the first PowerBall jackpot this year – makes her one of the national lottery’s youngest multimillionaires.
- She plans to use the money to create a “soft life” for herself and her family and is thinking of retiring.
A 28-year-old Pretoria woman became 2023’s first multimillion-rand PowerBall jackpot winner.
She is also one of the national lottery’s youngest multimillionaires.
The woman, who works as a call centre agent, won R72 million in the PowerBall draw on Tuesday.
In a statement by national lottery operator Ithuba, the winner, who has worked in the insurance industry since 2013, said she was thinking of retiring early to enjoy her newfound wealth.
She expressed shock and excitement after receiving the news that she had won.
“I honestly thought the phone call was a scam. [I didn’t] believe that there were people who actually won millions from the national lottery because they are always anonymous and their identities are hidden when they take photos with the cheque. I just believed that people only won hundreds of thousands, but never millions.”
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Raised in Limpopo, the young woman plans to use her winnings to upgrade to a “soft life” for herself and her family, including her mother, two siblings and fiancé.
She said she would spend her winnings on a new car, travelling with her family, and enjoying a “fancy lifestyle”.
“I will definitely be buying a car that is more aligned with my new life, and I will be buying a house for myself and my family. We have always wanted to travel to France and other European countries as a family.”
Meanwhile, a Roodepoort man started the year on a high note when he won more than R32 million during the New Year’s Eve Lotto draw on Saturday night.
The winner, who is in his 50s and has worked for 34 years in the security sector, also hails from Limpopo.