Lottery winner who scooped £250,000 jailed for failing to pay £12,000 court debt
A lucky Brit who won a quarter of a million pounds on the lottery has been jailed for failing to pay a £12,000 court debt.
Gerry Donaldson, 52, struck gold when he nabbed the £250,000 prize but seemingly appeared to blow it all.
The lotto winner has since been convicted of growing cannabis and an initial confiscation order of £11,750 was levelled back in 2018.
But four years on, the figure has been raised to £12,335 with interest, according to a hearing at Jedburgh Sheriff Court in Scotland last week.
Donaldson, who won big on a scratch card back in 2010, was heard to have been on a fast decline since pocketing the prize.
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Prosecutor Fiona Hamilton said: "He won a significant amount on the lottery some time ago but there are no details on where this has gone."
The case was heard at Jedburgh Sheriff Court in Scotland (Daily Record)Investigators found the grandfather had received £36,000 for the sale of his home in March 2021, Ms Hamilton explained.
The court heard that his only asset was a car, with Ms Hamilton questioning where the cash prize Donaldson won over a decade ago has ended up.
She was not the only one stunned by the lack of lotto winnings on Donaldson's person, reports the Daily Star.
A former neighbour said: "It does seem incredible how someone can go through so much money from a lottery period in such a short period.
The court heard speculation about what Donaldson did with his winnings (Getty Images)"He had his kids to look after which is fair enough but to have nothing left from getting such a huge sum and now being sent to jail is such a downturn.
"He still has to pay back the money as well - it shows that winning the lottery doesn't solve all your problems."
Sheriff Peter Paterson has since jailed Donaldson, of Borders, Scotland, who is facing jail time following a cannabis growing charge.
The sheriff added that the full amount of debt owed would be sought after despite the prison sentence.
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