A South Australian tradie’s life changed dramatically in 2017, when he won $22 million on MyLotto. The Powerball winner quit his plumbing job, and appears to have got caught up in the wrong crowd. He has now received a suspended sentence of three years and nine months behind bars after drugs and a gun were found at his ‘party house.’
Many people couldn’t think of anything better than winning a metric f**k tonne of cash. But a young tradesman’s hedonistic lifestyle has caught up with him after winning the MyLotto, with police photos of his party house suggesting he was throwing some wild festivities.
The man, who is 27, was sentenced last week to three years and nine months, with a non-parole period of 18-months.
The time behind bars, however, was suspended on a two-year good behaviour bond, with supervision. The man pleaded guilty to supplying MDMA and possessing a firearm without a licence. This came after a police raid on his Adelaide home found 2.26g of cocaine, 27.3g of MDMA and a handgun.
Police photos submitted to court also show nangs, Dare iced coffee, beer bottles and bongs strewn around, and a bowl of white powder in a mostly empty fridge.
Per the Adelaide Advertiser, Adelaide District Court judge Heath Barklay said the man had been “hopelessly drug addicted” and had started hanging out with the wrong crowd.
“You stopped working and over time, you slipped into regular drug use…Because of the money that you had won, there was no motivation on your part to work or do anything other than enjoy yourself.”
Judge Heath Barklay
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The judge said the former plumber’s mountains of money had been used to feed the drug habits of those at his house parties. The judge also said one of the man’s “so-called friends” brought an illegal firearm and ammunition to store in the house.
The court was told that many considered the man a “free ride,” and took advantage of his generosity.
According to sentancing submissions, the man’s millions were being managed by his parents in a trust, but the man had used some of his winnings to buy property in South Australia and New Zealand.
The man’s lawyer said that the young tradie had experienced a “wake up call” after realising he could go to jail for his actions.
Yet further evidence, we suppose, that winning the lottery isn’t always the golden goose you might think it is…
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