The owner of the bookshop in the centre of the small Belgian town of Mouscron would be best advised to keep her head down for a while.
For a few hours on Friday night, 29 of her friends thought they had won the best part of â,¬27-million (about R191-million) when their syndicate’s numbers came up in the EuroMillions jackpot draw.
Word spread quickly through the town as ecstatic members of the syndicate phoned friends and started laying plans for how they would spend their fortune. Each member of the syndicate was on course to win â,¬900 000 (about R6,3-million).
Joy turned to disappointment when a member of the syndicate was told by the lottery organisers that there had been no winning entry. The owner of the bookshop had bought a ticket on behalf of the syndicate but failed to enter their numbers and bought a lucky-dip ticket instead.
Christiane Farvacque, owner of the café La Fraternelle, will never forgive her now former friend whose bookshop is across the road from her premises.
“We were all bitterly disappointed,” she told the BBC. “You think you are the only winners in Europe, but you end up with nothing. Even in 20 years’ time, my hair will stand up on end whenever I see her.”
Lawyers are now demanding that the 30 players be given “Christmas justice” and some of the jackpot because there were no other winners. — Guardian Unlimited Â