Woman Unaware She Had $39 Million Lottery Ticket in Purse for Weeks

Woman Unaware She Had $39 Million Lottery Ticket in Purse for Weeks
People fill out Lotto tickets in Germany in a file photo. John Macdougall/AFP via Getty Images
The Associated Press
Updated:

BERLIN—Lottery officials say a woman in Germany carried a winning ticket in her purse for weeks without realizing it was worth about 33 million euros ($39 million).

Lotto Bayern said Wednesday that the 45-year-old woman was the sole winner of a draw on June 9, having correctly guessed seven fields on a German lottery ticket.

It quoted the woman, who wasn’t named, saying “I still get dizzy at the thought that I carelessly carried almost 33 million euros around in my purse for several weeks.”

The mother of one had picked random numbers on the 1.20-euro lottery ticket and doesn’t plan to play again, saying the win was “more than enough for my husband, my daughter, and me,” the company quoted her as saying.

It said she plans to use her lucky windfall to live a healthy life and do more for the environment.