Lottery winner dumps girlfriend and buys Ferrari after $10 million jackpot win
/A German factory worker immediately splashed out on a brand-new Ferrari after scooping €9.9 million (US$10.2m) in his country’s lottery.
Kursat Yildirim also bought a Porsche 911 Cabriolet and a luxury watch, then reportedly dumped his girlfriend and started looking for a wife.
The unnamed shocked partner, 50, told local media: “It’s unbelievable how money has changed him.”
She detailed how the couple had been getting closer to each other since May. They had been seeing each other every second day and started to get to know each other’s families.
After he won the giant jackpot, she said: “He called me and screamed: ‘Honey, I’m rich, I’ll buy you everything!’.”
However, the next time they saw each other she tearfully said that he coolly told her he ‘wanted to take a break.’ Heartbroken, the woman was horrified and says she never wants to see him again.
The 42-year-old former crane operator who lives in Dortmund, Germany, also reunited with his stepmother after being more than 20 years apart.
He said: “I'm the happiest person! I've been looking for her for so long and I would have never stopped until I died.
“She is very, very special to me. You know, anyone can make a child. But not everyone can be there for a child.
"She did everything for us, more than some mothers do for their own children,” he told reporters after the emotional reuniting.
Yildirim, also known as ‘Chico,’ also quit his job as a crane operator at a Dortmund steel plant in North Rhine-Westphalia.
The son of hard-working Turkish migrant parents, he previously told the press how he plans to celebrate his special day. “Finally I can pick up my brand new Ferrari. Then I’ll invite my best friends to our favorite steak restaurant.”
As well as the Ferrari 448 Pista, Kursat bought a high-end luxury watch along with a US$260,000 Porsche 911 Turbo S Cabriolet after being told about his lottery win.
Talking about his chequered past, Kursat said: “I’ve done a lot of bad things. I’ve been at the very bottom. Today I’m so sorry about all of that.”
He had previously been convicted of fraud and robbed several amusement arcades to feed his gambling and drug addiction.
Kursat was given a 27-month jail term in February 2021 but was released early because of his good conduct and willingness to undertake therapy.
Kursat admitted: “I’ve always been the misfit of my family. So many people have written me off. They said I’m done.”
“I kept praying to God for another chance because I was desperate to leave my old life behind.”
The weightlifting enthusiast revealed he had been overwhelmed with messages from women since he announced his lottery windfall on Facebook and Instagram.
He spoke about his future relationships by saying: “I really want to fall in love. I’m looking for a woman who loves to travel and is ready to start a family with me. I need a woman I can trust no matter what happens.”