Inside horror stories of lottery winners who lost it all – from falling for con artists to blowing jackpot on parties
THE MOST horrifying lottery winners stories can be revealed – from one falling for con artist to blowing jackpot on parties.
Dozens of lucky punters fork out millions every week and see their lives changed forever.
But some saw their lives spiral out of control as they crashed down from their epic high.
The Sun Online can reveal some of the most horrifying stories from winners who lost everything after bagging millions in lottery.
Lee Ryan, dubbed the “Lotto Lag”, is the country’s first lottery winner to end up behind bars.
The ex-jailbird scooped a £12.7 million windfall but his luck turned around after a series of unfortunate events.
After two divorces and bad business decisions Lee was left with no pennies from the win.
The cash, his £1million mansion, £235,000 helicopter and £125,000
plane, the fleet of flash cars and superbikes are now all gone.
‘CON ARTIST’
Meanwhile, winner Mark Lipsham, from New Zealand, scooped £10million after buying the lucky ticket with Powerball.
The truck driver quit his job on the motorways shortly after the win – but his life took a major turn after meeting Kim Helmbright.
The woman claimed to be a financial expert and charged Mark a hefty £60,000 for her services.
The man claimed he handed Helmbright almost £1.5million to fund house purchases on his behalf.
The winner then ended his professional relationship with her after realising his bank balance had slumped to £6.2million.
He told the New Zealand Herald: “In the end, it really wasn’t help at all. I actually got conned and out of quite a lot of money.”
ONLINE TROLLS
Elsewhere, what should have been an exciting and positive time for Lara Griffiths, from Leeds, turned into the “darkest time” of her life.
After bagging the jackpot with her partner Roger, the lovebirds “fell out of love” and Lara became a victim of online trolls.
Before the couple’s downfall, they splashed the cash on expensive cars and homes to fund an extravagant lifestyle, reports claim.
But their lavish lives came to an end when the lucky couple went through financial crash.
She told The Sun: “The cars were always second-hand. We had a mortgage on the house.
“We were incapable of making financial choices on our own. Something that would help invest and manage the money positively. We didn’t know how to do that.”
The pair had a messy divorce after 14 years of marriage after Lara claimed Roger had an affair with his pal, but he denied it.
And when the split was publicised, the mum-of-two then started getting trolled by users who believed she had blown the winnings on plastic surgery and designer handbags.
After losing almost all her fortune and marriage Lara went on to work as a tattoo artist.
TRAGIC END
Margaret Loughrey, 56, scooped the staggering £27m jackpot and gave loved ones £1m each.
Ms Loughrey bought the ticket on a whim after applying for a charity job – matching five numbers and two lucky stars to bag a whopping £26,863,588.
Despite her huge win, Margaret continued living in a bungalow in her hometown of Strabane, in Northern Ireland.
She splashing the cash on string of properties including – a dream home with a six-bay glass-fronted car showroom, a pub and a mill.
Despite not being able to drive she bought a £70,000 Jaguar XJ50, a classic motorbike, a VW Campervan, a VW Beetle and a vintage Land Rover jeep.
But just four months after her win Margaret was sectioned after being told she was “a danger to herself and others”.
She left hospital but her plight sadly continued as her life became blighted by mental health problems.
Tragically, Margaret had just finished her dream home when she was found dead in her bungalow.
The lucky winner never got the chance to live in it.