On February 24, 2021, the Nigerian National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) received a petition in connection with nearly N190 million in outstanding lottery winnings, African media reported March 29.

    Sefas Esemeika, Goodluck Solomon and Uloz Odum said they won the N190m prize.

    The three men said they went to a lottery agent in Port Harcourt, the state capital, to try to cash the prize, but were told the lottery company had withdrawn the money. The three appealed to the National Lottery Regulatory Commission for help in recovering their winnings from the lottery company. They attached evidence of the purchase of the ticket, including the ticket number and the winning notice.

    Lawyer Victor Emerson said the National Lottery Regulatory Commission had not responded to the petition three weeks after it was received.

    However, the three were not entitled to claim the prize money, the lottery company said through its lawyers Babajimi Ayorinde and Oladimiji Salumi. "Our client has reviewed the tickets you forwarded to us and believes you have violated the terms and conditions," the lawyer said. "In view of this, our clients feel that you have no right to claim any bonus."