Bas-Caraquet fisherman claims $64M record-breaking lottery jackpot

Merel Chiasson's winning ticket was sitting on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.

A few weeks before it was set to expire, he learned he'd won a record-breaking $64-million jackpot. 

The fisherman from Bas-Caraquet, on the Acadian Peninsula, accepted the prize at the Atlantic Lottery office in Moncton on Thursday. It's the largest lottery win ever claimed in Atlantic Canada.

The winning Lotto 649 ticket was purchased in April 2023 and was set to expire next month, leading to speculation and rumours over what had happened. Some suggested it was purchased by a group of people who worked at Walmart, while another said someone had lost the ticket while hunting in the woods.

In the end, it was sitting in Chiasson's bedroom — all part of his plan to regularly check a month's worth of tickets at once, shortly before they are set to expire.

When he finally went to the local store, Chiasson said he looked at the printout and was in disbelief with the number of zeros he saw.

"I collected my tickets, I paid and I got in my truck and went to where she was working. I told Nancy, 'I think I won 64 million. I'm not sure,'" he said, during a brief question and answer session with lottery officials, conducted in French.

On Wednesday, Chiasson and his partner Nancy travelled to Atlantic Lottery in Moncton to confirm the win and collect the prize. Chiasson was publicly announced as the winner at a news conference at the organization's office on Thursday, with confetti falling down as lottery officials handed over a giant cheque.

The ticket was sold at Dépanneur Pokemouche in northeastern New Brunswick. The retailer will receive $640,000, 1 per cent of the jackpot.

Molly Cormier, director of brand and communications with Atlantic Lottery, said the organization had remained hopeful someone would finally come forward with the ticket. 

"We're just so over the moon excited that it's concluded in this way and that we're able to pay out this prize to this very deserving winner," she said.

Chiasson said he's been playing the lottery for 30 years, especially Lotto 649, and he plans to keep buying more tickets.

A crab fisherman for 40 years, he started working at a local fish plant a few years ago. He now plans to retire and use some of the money to help out his family.

Beyond that, Chiasson didn't reveal any plans for the winnings. 

"I don't want anything big," he said. "It's not going to change me, I'm still the same person."