A €1 million (US$1.15 million) lottery ticket was recovered from the trash in Italy after the winner, unaware she had won the jackpot, called on binmen to help retrieve it, according to the waste management company SANB.

Roberto Nicola Toscano, administrator of SANB in Italy’s southern Puglia region, said the instant win ticket was “miraculously still in one piece” after rubbish workers searched through mounds of trash on their truck.

The woman, who remains anonymous, had checked her ticket at a local shop after the drawing on Sunday, but the machine indicated it was “non-payable” because smaller retailers can only redeem small wins. Unaware she had won the big jackpot, she discarded the stub.

“When she returned home from the store, a family member told her that her regular numbers had won,” Toscano said. The woman and her family rushed back to the shop but found the ticket had already been thrown away and the trash collected.

The winner had consistently played the same numbers, which were associated with a loved one, Toscano added.

The waste workers’ successful recovery of the ticket ensured the woman could claim her €1 million prize.

Sources