2023 is off to a fabulous start for Bruce Carter and Emiliana Kaftan after discovering they matched 6/6 numbers from the BC/49 draw on January 4, 2023, netting them the $2-million jackpot.
“We were driving and I thought, ‘it’s a new year, why not purchase a ticket’ and of course we had to buy it from her favourite place,” said Carter about their motivation for purchasing the ticket.
The Quesnel residents purchased the ticket from the Husky on Front Street and discovered the news of their win the morning of January 5 after seeing online that someone from Quesnel won the jackpot.
“I had my ticket beside the computer and started comparing my numbers to the winning ones and said, ’okay, something’s goofy here because these numbers are the same!’”
Carter then scanned the ticket on BCLC’s Lotto! App to ensure he was seeing things correctly before calling Kaftan over to tell her the news.
“She signed the ticket so fast and started hopping around,” Carter said with a chuckle. “At one point I asked her to pinch me to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.”
Kaftan couldn’t believe the shocking news.
“My heart was beating and I started shaking with excitement,” she said.
Quesnel’s newest millionaires plan to celebrate their win over some Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) with Carter’s mother and look forward to embarking on a big fishing trip in the near future, thanks to their prize. They also plan to share some of the win with family.
In 2022, British Columbians won more than $25 million in BC/49 prizes.
Players can purchase BC/49 at lottery retail locations and online at PlayNow.com, with tickets available for the Wednesday and Saturday draws before 7:30 pm PST. Winning numbers and group release forms are available online at bclc.com. Players can now check their lottery tickets anytime, on iOS and Android devices using the BCLC Lotto! App here.
BCLC offers socially responsible gambling entertainment while generating income to benefit all British Columbians. Remember, play for fun, not to make money. For more information, visit GameSense.com.
