On the afternoon of February 4, Phu Vinh, owner of Phu Vinh Lottery Agency in Tra Vinh City, confirmed that a man had come to him for help after discovering that his two winning lottery tickets were too torn and deteriorated to be redeemed.

The winning tickets, issued by Hau Giang Lottery Company, carried the lucky number 916303, drawn on February 1 (the fourth day of Tet). The unfortunate winner, identified as Mr. M., had purchased the tickets but accidentally destroyed them before realizing his win.

Destroyed tickets leave little hope for redemption

"Mr. M.’s younger brother also won two grand prize tickets with the same number, and I successfully exchanged them for the winnings on the evening of February 1," Vinh explained.

"The next day, on February 2, Mr. M. brought his own two winning tickets, but they were torn apart, missing both the top and bottom sections, leaving only the middle portion intact."

One ticket still displayed the digits 9163, while the other retained 91630, falling short of the full 916303 required for verification.

Mr. M. recounted that he had tucked the tickets into his pants pocket before heading out to catch ba khía (a type of crab) and gather dua nuoc (nipa palm fruit). When he later retrieved them after hearing about the winning number, he found the tickets completely soaked and tattered.

A family nearly sweeps the jackpot

Vinh further revealed that 15 grand prize tickets with the number 916303 had been sold, and most of the winners were relatives of Mr. M.

A nephew of Mr. M. shared, "My uncle bought 10 tickets with the same number and generously gave away 8 to his siblings and other family members, keeping just two for himself. Unfortunately, those were the ones that got ruined. He’s now completely devastated."

Lottery company declines payout due to severe damage

Speaking to VietNamNet, Le Van Thang, Director of Hau Giang Lottery Company, confirmed that someone from Tra Vinh had inquired about whether the damaged tickets could still be redeemed.

However, after careful review, the company determined that the tickets did not meet the requirements outlined in Circular 75, which mandates that tickets must remain intact and legible for verification.

"The remaining pieces of the tickets are too small, unidentifiable, and cannot be matched to the original stub," Thang explained. "We deeply regret this unfortunate situation - winning the grand prize is incredibly rare, but we must follow the regulations, and the tickets do not qualify for payout."

Hoai Thanh