15 Riches to Rags Story of Lottery Winners Who Blew it All Away

11Janite Lee: $18 mn

Janite Lee won $18 mn in 1993. However, with money came bad habits and she reportedly lost $300,000 per year in gambling. She was also generous to a fault, donating to charitable and political organizations, including $1 mn to Washington University for a new library. She filed for bankruptcy in 2001.

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12Martyn and Kay Tott: 3,011,065 pounds

Martyn and Kay Tott beat the odds of 1 in 14 million to win the National Lottery jackpot. Martyn was a purchasing manager and was living with his wife Kay in a two-bedroom apartment before winning the mega jackpot.

With the win, both started a new lifestyle splurging on an Audi car, luxury house, and a world tour. The winning ticket had to be claimed within 6 months of winning the jackpot and the couple somehow lost the ticket. Despite having proof of winning the lottery, without the ticket, the lottery organizer refused payment. Even Tony Blair and Sir Richard Branson appealed to the organizer to payout, but they didn’t budge.

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13Billie Bob Harrell Jr: $ 31 mn

Billie Bob Harrell Jr. won $31 mn in Lotto Texas game in 1997. Earlier, Harrell used to stock shelves at Home Depot and now he began splurging on friends and family. He bought ranches, bought a few homes and donated to the church.

Slowly, his marriage fell apart and spent all his winnings. Sadly, in 1999 he took his own life, less than two years of winning the lottery.

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14Callie Rogers: $2.67 mn

At the tender age of 16 years, Callie Rogers won $2.67 mn dollars or 1.9 mn pounds in 2003. She spent her money on drugs, extravagant trips, cosmetic surgeries and partying. After marrying and having three kids, she has just 2,000 pounds in her bank and has admitted having attempted suicide three times. But she says she was happy now.

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15Ronnie Music Jr: $3 mn

45-year-old Ronnie Music Jr. won $3 mn in Georgia Lottery in February of 2015. But instead of making sensible use of the funds, he spent all of it on crystal meth and played a drug dealer. He was caught and was sentenced to 21 years in prison in April 2015.

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We have all heard the stories. Lottery winners squandering their sudden fortune on reckless extravagance, living excessively beyond their means, and going bankrupt. Yet scores of people play the lottery anyway despite such anecdotal reports.