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Syrian refugee wins a million euros on the French lottery

The Local France/AFP
The Local France/AFP - [email protected]
Syrian refugee wins a million euros on the French lottery
Photo: AFP

A Syrian refugee has scooped a million euros in the French lottery after a scratch card ticket he bought in a northern suburb of Paris turned out to be a winner.

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The Syrian refugee arrived in France back in 2011 after fleeing the civil war in his home country.

The man, aged in his 30s, bought the lucky ticket for €10 in Bagnolet, Seine-Saint-Denis. 

The refugee actually scooped the money last May, but the story of his win has only just emerged this week after the Federation Francaise, the operator of France's national lottery, confirmed it to Le Parisien newspaper

The refugee, who received his fat check in June,  is one of 215 others who won the million-euro jackpot last year. 

According to reports he used his winnings to buy an apartment and he wants to bring the rest of his family to France. He also plans to open a restaurant and improve his French.

Before civil war ravaged his own country, the man had owned a successful small business but he’d been making a living as a labourer since coming to France.

It’s not the first time a refugee has struck it big in a Europe lottery. Just last month, a Senegalese migrant saved from a sinking ship by the Spanish coastguard won €400,000 in a Christmas draw.

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