A man whose credit card was stolen and used to buy a winning lottery ticket is appealing for the thieves to come forward – so they can split the cash.
The thieves bought a winning €500,000 (£414,000) scratchcard with the stolen card in the French city of Toulouse.
But the ticket has not been submitted to claim the prize.
The victim of the theft, identified in police documents as Jean-David E, had his backpack containing his bank card stolen from his car earlier this month.
He asked his bank to block it but learned his card had already been used in a local shop, where two apparently homeless men had used it to buy a winning scratch card.
“They were so totally happy that they forgot their cigarettes and their belongings and walked out like crazy people,” Jean-David’s lawyer Pierre Debuisson said.
He said Jean-David has filed a police complaint about the theft, but is ready to withdraw it if the thieves come forward so that they can share the money.
“It’s an incredible story, but it’s all true,” he added.
The lawyer launched a national appeal on Thursday, asking the thieves to contact his office to make a deal.
“Without them, no one would have won,” he told public broadcaster France-2.
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La Francaise des Jeux (FDJ), the state lottery operator, said no one had yet submitted the ticket to claim the prize.
Mr Debuisson said prosecutors may try to seize the winnings, considering them illegally obtained gains, and warned the ticket will eventually expire.
“Time is working against us,” he said.
“You risk nothing… we will share with you,” he said. “And you would be able to change your lives.”
