Lottery liar accused of telling family and friends he is winner of £171m EuroMillions jackpot

A lottery ‘liar’ is accused of telling family and friends that he was the secret winner of a £171m EuroMillions jackpot but in fact making it all up as lotto bosses have confirmed his claim is ‘fishy.’ 

Rob Strain, 33, from Newcastle, claimed he had won the cash shortly after the September 23 draw and said he was going into hiding in texts to family and friends.

Gloating at his local shop, the 33-year-old allegedly said he was the winner of the third biggest Lottery prize of all time.

Strain, a roofer who was out of work after he lost his job during the pandemic, is accused of boasting in snaps that he was looking at huge new homes.

And in more claims about his ‘luxury’ lifestyle, he allegedly told people that he was shopping for fancy cars and on the look out for private security.   

The fantasist’s tall tales quickly captivated his Newcastle estate.

But the ruse began to unravel and people became suspicious when they discovered the ‘millionaire’ and his girlfriend were borrowing money.

Rob Strain, 33, from Newcastle, pictured, claimed he had won the cash shortly after the September 23 draw and said he was going into hiding in texts to family and friends

Gloating at his local shop, the 33-year-old, pictured, said he was the winner of the third biggest Lottery prize of all time

Gloating at his local shop, the 33-year-old, pictured, said he was the winner of the third biggest Lottery prize of all time

Lotto company Camelot said in a statement at the time that one ticket-holder in the UK had scooped and claimed the money but their name was not released.

Camelot’s Andy Carter, Senior Winners’ Advisor at The National Lottery, said at the time: ‘What an amazing year for UK EuroMillions players. 

‘We are delighted to have received a claim for the third biggest ever win and look forward to supporting the ticket-holder and helping them to start to enjoy their truly life-changing win.’

Strain, pictured, a roofer who was out of work after he lost his job during the pandemic, boasted in snaps that he was looking at huge new homes. And in more claims about his 'luxury' lifestyle, he told people that he was shopping for fancy cars and on the look out for private security

Strain, pictured, a roofer who was out of work after he lost his job during the pandemic, boasted in snaps that he was looking at huge new homes. And in more claims about his ‘luxury’ lifestyle, he told people that he was shopping for fancy cars and on the look out for private security

Those who have been taken in by his alleged lies have been left devastated, including one man who said he thought he was giving the couple a helping hand when he lent them money.

The man, who has his own business, added that the incident has left him feeling physically sick and like he’s been ‘bent over a barrel.’  

A family source told the Sun: ‘Some people have fallen for his story and given him money, but most of us know he’s deluded and that it’s all lies and he’s on the take.

‘He’s been to view three mansions, including one for £3.9million. He said it wasn’t his cup of tea and had to think on it. Pull the other one! He also bragged about shopping for Bentleys.’

They said that their suspicions that he was a fake were raised when he asked a favour of a woman in the shop- borrowing her caravan for two weeks to hide out.

The source said that is not something that a lottery winner does.   

Those who have been taken in by Strain, pictured, have been left devastated, including one man who said he thought he was giving the couple a helping hand when he lent them money

Those who have been taken in by Strain, pictured, have been left devastated, including one man who said he thought he was giving the couple a helping hand when he lent them money

The 33-year-old’s alleged fake lotto win comes after he previously told Chronicle Live about losing his £2,000-a-month job due to Covid.

He told the newspaper that he was on Universal Credit which did not come through.

Strain claimed that the DWP told him to go to a foodbank if he was hungry over the August bank holiday last year. 

MailOnline contacted Strain for comment. 

In a statement, a Camelot spokesperson said: ‘We issued a statement on 25 September in relation to the £171m EuroMillions jackpot being claimed by a lucky UK ticket-holder. We don’t have anything to add to our claim statement at this stage.’

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