How a £4m Instant Win Resulted in (Un)Lucky Pair Being Jailed!

How A Penniless Pair Hit the Headlines Before Jail!

Cast your minds back to 2019, I know it seems a long time ago now, but do you recall a news piece we brought you on two pals who struck it lucky on a scratchcard? No? Let me remind you! Jon-Ross Watson, 32, and Mark Goodram 36 (at the time), purchased a National Lottery scratchcard and struck a fortune! Within an instant, their £10 stake had amassed a life-changing sum of £4million! They couldn’t believe their luck! Well, it’s everybody’s dream isn’t it – to win big on a scratchcard.

The pair decided to go on a drugs and drinks-fuelled bender, celebrating for 4-days straight. A sign of what was to come as soon as the winnings were paid. Instead of seeking financial help on what to do with such a vast sum of money, the pair wanted to literally blow the lot! Their money, their choice I suppose.

From Nothing to Nothing Again

It’s not your typical rags to riches story, but incredible nonetheless! The two friends decided one morning in 2019 to travel from Bolton to London, even though they had no money, purely to go begging on the streets. On route to the capital, Goodram wrote down the credit card details of a stranger on his hand. It’s unclear how he got these. Rumour has it he saw someone’s card while on the train, but this is unconfirmed.

Their first port of call was Waitrose where Goodram keyed in the numbers of the credit card to purchase scratchcards. On discovering their win, the pair shared images on social media of themselves with money, food, and drinks, bragging how they had just won £4million. The pictures, drinks, drugs, and food kept on coming for a period of four days.

So, what happened? When winning anything large, checks must be carried out to validate the win, and not just when it comes to lottery prizes but online slots jackpots too. And bingo jackpots too. Camelot when conducting these validation checks, contacted Goodram to ask for his bank details. They weren’t exactly going to pay him £4m in cash now where they!

Alarm bells started to ring when…

…Camelot discovered Goodram didn’t have a bank account. How did he buy the scratchcards with no banking facilities at his disposal? The more the alleged winner spoke, the more suspicious Camelot grew until it was revealed the bank card used to buy the £10 scratchcard didn’t belong to Goodram nor Watson! In total, the pair purchased five scratchcards (£50), one of which was hiding the £4m fortune, but they did not have the consent of the credit card owner!

Fast forward to 2021 and the pair have been sent to jail for fraud! Recorder Sarah Johnston at Bolton Crown Court heard how the men had pleaded not guilty to three counts of fraud initially, but realising they had no way of wrangling out of this one, they decided to plead guilty at the last minute. She told the pair: “You must have thought all your Christmases had come at once. Your offending is rooted in greed and a total lack of respect for the property of others.” Goodram was sentenced to 19-month in prison and Watson to 18-months.

Source: “Two Men Who Went on 4-Day Bender After £4m Scratch Card Win with Stolen Bank Card Jailed”. Mirror. December 14, 2021.