Ontario Lottery Win Sparks a Surprising Group Dispute
So here’s a story that really makes you pause and think about how quickly a life-changing moment can turn complicated. A Toronto man, Alex Parucha, is at the centre of a major dispute after a $1-million Lotto Max Encore prize was claimed entirely by him—despite police saying the ticket came from a group play arrangement. What should have been a happy celebration has now turned into a criminal case.
According to Ontario Provincial Police, the winning ticket was cashed on July 2, when Parucha reportedly walked into an OLG location and claimed the full prize as the sole winner. At first, everything seemed routine. OLG even issued a press release in August celebrating the win. In that release, Parucha shared how emotional the moment had been for him. He talked about how he’d been playing the lottery for 30 years, how he’d won a Free Play, added Encore at the cashier’s suggestion, and then discovered the next day—after scanning the ticket on his phone—that he was suddenly a millionaire. His family had been thrilled. There was happiness, disbelief, excitement… all the emotions you’d expect.
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But behind the scenes, complaints had begun surfacing. OLG’s Forensic Investigation Unit received claims suggesting that this wasn’t an individual win at all, but part of a group arrangement involving three people. That’s where everything shifted. The investigation was turned over to the OPP, and after a joint review, it was determined that the ticket should have been shared rather than kept by one person. In other words, those winnings were meant to be split—yet they weren’t.
Once the findings were confirmed, Parucha, who is 70, was arrested. He has now been charged with theft over $5,000, fraud over $5,000, and possession of property obtained by crime. He has since been released from custody and is scheduled to appear in court in January.
What makes this even more striking is how public and positive the story originally appeared. He had been photographed holding the big novelty cheque, describing his shock and talking about plans to share the fortune with his family, even mentioning property he hoped to buy. All of it was presented as a straightforward feel-good lottery moment.
It’s a reminder that group lottery plays, as fun as they can be, come with an unwritten rule: clear communication and trust are everything. And when either of those falls apart, even a million-dollar jackpot can turn into a million-dollar problem.
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