Dokkeo said she would spend a significant portion of the winnings on her family, especially buying a new home for them. She will also devote some funds to travel. “I want to go to South Korea, Japan, Vietnam,” she said. “I will go to anywhere if I can afford it.”

A source in Laos told RFA that business interests in the country have control over the lottery and manipulate results to avoid large pay-outs. Drawings for the national lottery held three times a week often show numbers that are not picked or vanish from purchased tickets after being announced. In one example, the number 509 appeared as a random number on Oct. 14 but disappeared from tickets purchased throughout the day of the drawing, a source said.

Minister Bounchom said authorities in charge will work to address illegal lotteries online, which he warned encouraged people to become addicted to gambling. Officials will also reduce the number of lotteries issued from four to two per week and end the scratch card lottery.