Montreal man retiring early after winning half of the $80 million Lotto-Max jackpot

One lucky Montreal man is now a multimillionaire after he took home half of the $80 million Lotto-Max jackpot.

Jean Lamontagne, 63, thought it was a mistake at first when he checked the numbers on his phone on Dec. 3.

“I closed the app, I turned off my phone,” he said. “I restarted my phone.”

Lamontagne said he usually plays the same numbers and that his consistency paid off.

He first shared the news with his boss, letting him know that he would be retiring from the factory he worked at earlier than planned. He returned to work a few days after winning and treated his colleagues to pizza.

He split the prize with another lucky winner from Alberta.

Loto-Quebec said that in 2024, Quebecers have won more than $1 billion in lottery prizes.

“It's the biggest jackpot that has ever been won in Canada, and it's the second time it's been partially won in Quebec,” said Loto-Quebec spokesperson Renaud Dugas

The other big win came in September when retired physical education teacher from Outaouais, Bernard Morisette, won half the $80 million jackpot.

“It's very nice to give this amount of money just before Christmas, just before the holidays,” said Dugas.

Lamontagne said not much will change and he’ll continue to live in a normal house, drive a normal car and have a normal life. However, he plans to invest part of his winning in real estate and purchase multiplexes for his children, his brother, and his sisters-in-law.

He said he will use the money to travel in Europe and spoil his family, but that Christmas will be no different.