'I’m going to buy a home for my family': Calgarian wins $2.5M

Naresh Avala won $2.5 million on the Sept. 2 Lotto 6-49 draw.

A Calgary man who won $2.5 million on a September Lotto 6-49 draw says he plans to use the money to make a big purchase.

"I’m going to buy a home for my family," Naresh Avala said.

Avala says he tries to buy a ticket for every Lotto 6-49 draw, but was shocked when he looked up the winning numbers for the Sept. 2 draw and realized he won.

"My family and I, we were all very surprised," he said. "And grateful and excited, very excited."

Avala, who split a $5-million jackpot with another ticketholder in Quebec, says whatever money is left after purchasing a house will be put into savings.

The Calgarian purchased his ticket at a Shell gas station in Thornecliff on Fourth Street N.W.

Avala wasn’t the only Albertan to take home a major prize on the Sept. 2 draw; a ticket purchased somewhere in Alberta won $175,646 by matching five of the six draw numbers plus the bonus number.

Five other tickets purchased in Alberta took home $50,000 each after winning on the September SuperDraw.