Senegal refugee won 400 thousand euros on the Christmas lottery in Spain

The Senegal refugee, who has been living in Spain for several years, won 400 thousand euros (about 30.5 million rubles) in the annual Christmas lottery. Shortly before that, a 35-year-old native of West Africa lost his work.

A man named Ngama became one of the 1600 owners of lottery tickets. The cash prize draw was held on Tuesday, December 22, writes The Guardian with reference to La Voz de Almeria .

The 35-year-old Senegalese bought a lottery ticket in the resort town of Rocketas de Mar, where he lives with his wife. “I just can’t believe it. It happened that we did not have five euros for two,” the refugee told the local publication.

Ngam and his wife eight years ago arrived on the island of Tenerife from Morocco. The Spanish coastal guard saved a boat on which there were 65 refugees. “I want to say thanks to the Spaniards and the Spanish government that saved me when I was at sea,” said the Senegalese winning hundreds of thousands of euro.

After arriving in Spain, Ngam and his wife found temporary income, working on farms and harvesting in greenhouses, which are many in the province of Almeria. Recently, the Senegalese was fired, so the prize from playing the lottery came by the way.

The annual Spanish Christmas lottery, known as "El Gordo" or "The Fat One", is considered one of the richest in the world. Its total budget this year is 2.2 billion euros. The peculiarity of this lottery is that they seek to distribute the winnings between a large number of people who bought tickets, and not a narrow circle of winners.

The Christmas lottery has been held in Spain since 1812. Even the Civil War of 1936-1939 did not prevent traditions: each side of the conflict arranged its own draw. Standard tickets cost 20 euros, lines behind them are lined up a few weeks before the draw.