BCLC is encouraging people who bought a ticket for the  Lotto Max draw in Surrey to check the numbers to see if they matched the following seven: 2, 5, 23, 30, 35, 45 and 46.

Those were $1-million-winning digits that night, and nobody has yet stepped forward to claim the prize.

The ticket will expire on May 21, 2025, a year after the draw.

"All lottery prize winners have 52 weeks from the draw date printed on their ticket to come forward to claim their prize," says a news release from BCLC (British Columbia Lottery Corporation).  

"The specific retail location where the winning lottery ticket was purchased, and the lottery winner鈥檚 name, will be announced after the winner has come forward to claim the prize."

Meantime, Surrey resident Dharamjit Singh was shopping at Scottsdale Centre in North Delta when he learned he matched 4/4 Extra numbers from the  Lotto Max draw, scoring a $500,000 prize.

鈥淚 went to the drugstore to pick something up and used the self-scanner to check my ticket,鈥� recalled Singh of the moment he realized he won. 鈥淭he place where I purchased the ticket was close by, so I went there to check too. I didn鈥檛 realize I won $500,000 at first 鈥� the retailer helped me figure it out!鈥� 

Singh, who bought the winning ticket at the mall lottery kiosk, says he plans to use his winnings to pay off his mortgage and help his kids with their student debt.

BCLC says that in 2024, B.C. lottery players have redeemed more than $132 million from Lotto Max, a nationwide lottery game drawn on Tuesdays and Fridays after 7:30 p.m. Pacific time.