$60 Million Phone Call for Toronto Lottery Winner
You may easily include recently declared $60 million winner Bocheng Mei among the digitally converted, even if people are gradually warming up to playing the lottery online and still much prefer the in-person convenience store experience.
According to a spokeswoman, the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) is promoting online lotteries as a more convenient method of purchasing lottery tickets.
90% of lottery product sales currently come from OLG retail channels, while just 10% come from digital platforms. More people have been gravitating toward digital platforms since the outbreak. More games, the easier "Direct Pay" option, and the subscription option Mei used, "Never Miss A Draw," are all receiving positive feedback from the public.
Mei, 26, made that choice in order to have his tickets bought automatically for every future draw.
$60 Million Winfall in the Lotto
On May 7, 2025, Mei won the $60 million LOTTO 6/49 Gold Ball jackpot.
"I saw lottery winners in the news and on social media, so I decided to check out OLG.ca,” he recalled during his Winner Celebration in Toronto. “I do most stuff online, so I picked my own numbers, added ENCORE, and never had to think about it again. That was because I knew my tickets would be purchased automatically.”
When OLG called, Mei responded and asked him to check his OLG.ca account, which is unusual in this day and age when few people answer their phones when an unknown number appears. A registered gamer will receive an email from OLG letting them know they have won a prize.
Automatic Purchasing of Tickets
Mei missed the unique email because he hadn't checked his OLG.ca account.
"I answered the call, and the person said they were from OLG,” he said. “I started googling them to see if they were legit, as I’ve had enough experience detecting scam calls. I knew they were really OLG representatives because they didn’t ask for any banking information. They just asked me to check my OLG.ca account. That’s when I discovered I had a winning ticket, and it said I’d won $60 million! My hands and feet went numb.”
Mei phoned his parents first. He works in the IT industry.
New Home Purchase
“I tried to be very calm when I told them I’d won a big prize,” he said. “They wanted to make sure I wasn’t being tricked. But they know I’m always very cautious. When I told them the prize was $60 million, I reassured them they would never need to worry about money again. I told them they could retire and enjoy life. They were so shocked to hear the news.”
Mei stated that he wants to care for his parents and purchase a new house in Toronto. His immediate bucket list also includes a few more items.
“I love to learn, so I want to take advantage of various educational opportunities,” he said. “I also want to explore different cultures. So that means plenty of travel. I really want to experience the Aurora Borealis as well, which may involve trips to Finland and Iceland.”
