Lottery fever gripped Malaysia over the weekend as punters flocked to betting shops hoping to win a record 121.7 million ringgit (US$27.7 million) jackpot, with scuffles and even the use of ‘lucky’ snakes to pick numbers reported at some outlets in one of the last draws before the Lunar New Year.
Advertisement
Sports Toto Malaysia, the country’s largest lottery operator majority-owned by billionaire Vincent Tan, said three people from the states of Selangor and Negeri Sembilan struck the grand prize on Saturday, taking home 34.9 million ringgit, (US$7.9 million) each.
The announcement ended a week of frenzied buying as Sports Toto outlets across the country saw long queues of people hoping to become an instant millionaire.
Videos on Malaysian social media show punters ranging from office workers to security guards and senior citizens forming snaking queues for a shot at the jackpot.
Three local social media influencers even posted a video of them spending a combined 15,000 ringgit to buy 7,500 randomly generated number combinations.
A punter in Sarawak went so far as to bring two snakes, including an albino python, to a Sports Toto shop in Kuching, the state’s capital, hoping for luck ahead of the Chinese zodiac year of the snake, which starts at the end of the month.