Lottery winner hides P82 million prize money from wife to buy ex a new house
Keeping mum about a lottery win is quite understandable, especially if you have your safety and privacy in mind. But a man in China did so for an "unacceptable" reason that eventually cost him not just his marriage, but also a hefty sum of money.
According to South China Morning Post, the Chinese man won $1.5 million (P82 million) in the lotto two years ago and made sure to keep it a secret from his family and friends, including his wife. He transferred 2 million yuan (over P15 million) of it to his older sister, but his next move was something else: He decided to give 700,000 yuan (P5.6 million) to his ex-wife to help her buy a new house.
It took a while for his wife to find out his secret, but it prompted her to file for a divorce without hesitation. She thought of dividing their common property equally as a married couple but later asked for compensation for her ex-husband’s deception—a two-thirds payment of the combined 2.7 million yuan (over P20 million) he wired to his older sibling and ex-wife.
The court found that the man's lottery money was part of the couple's common property and hiding it from his wife can be considered fraud and embezzlement. That being said, the court favored the latter and granted her request for 60% of the concealed winnings.
Local newspaper Hangzhou Daily stated that neither of the parties issued an appeal to the court’s ruling.
