A Chinese man, Zhou , is about to lose his marriage for hiding his 1.2 million euros lottery win from his wife, Lin.
It’s Common For Lottery Winners To Hide Their Identity
Many people hide their identities after winning millions to prevent family and friends from feeling entitled to their money. However, it’s rare that a winner would keep such news from their spouse.
Lin Files For Divorce
After Zhou’s wife discovered his deception, she filed for divorce and claimed 60% of his earnings as damages.
Hiding The Winnings
According to court documents, Zhou transferred some of his winnings from his account before his wife knew he had them. His choice of recipients further fueled his wife’s anger, as one of them was his ex-wife.
Funding His Sister And Ex-Wife
700,000 yuan went to his ex-wife for a new apartment while two million yuan went to his sister, leaving him with a little over 8 million yuan.
Lin Felt Betrayed
Somehow, Zhou’s wife found out about the winnings and missing 2.7 million yuan and felt betrayed.
Lin Demands 2/3 Of Zhou’s Win
The wife’s suit asked the court for 2/3 of Zhou’s winnings excluding taxes, saying she was entitled to part of the winnings as his spouse.
Punitive Damages
The extra amount Lin wanted was reparations for her husband’s deception since she should’ve spent some of that money.
The Court Awards Lin Damages
The court in Wenzhou, Zhejiang, heard her case and awarded her 2.7 million yuan, much to her husband’s displeasure. It found him guilty of embezzling the couple’s common property.
It’s Chinese ‘Culture’
It’s not uncommon for people to hide their winnings from family, especially in China. That’s because the government requires them to contribute to national growth, including welfare and cultural programs.
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Lottery Winners Must Pay Taxes
Lottery winners are also required to pay tax on their jackpot, which often reduces their take-home significantly. Hence, the court’s decision to punish Zhou surpassed his dishonesty toward his spouse.
Zhou Paid Back Taxes
The government collected 1.57 million yuan from Zhou’s earnings as back taxes, leaving him with 8.43 million yuan.
Zhou’s Money Keeps Reducing
Since Zhou already gifted his sister and ex-wife 2.7 million yuan, he had 5.73 million yuan left. Of that 5.73 million, Zhou had to give his wife 2.7 million yuan by court order meaning his lottery win is now whittled to 3.03 million yuan.
There’s No Appeal
He’s expected to appeal the court order but hasn’t done so yet, nor has Lin complained about the judgment.
Lottery Winners Are Ordered To Contribute To The System
The Chinese rule of contributing to the country’s common good sparked a trend of lottery winners hiding their identities when receiving their money. However, their information is still in the system and accessible to the government.
The Lottery Winner Who Hid His Identity
Last year, another Chinese man, Li , received his lottery 219 million yuan winnings in a yellow cartoonish costume, covering himself from head to toe.
The Internet Gets Involved
The internet is deep in a debate over these man’s actions, with one group saying they were right to hide their winnings and another saying they were wrong.
Zhou Doesn’t Owe His Wife
However, the first school of thought noted that those spouses wouldn’t shoulder a debt if the men lost their lottery.
Spouses Are Entitled To Wins
The second group reminded the first one that since men used the couple’s common funds to buy the lottery tickets, their spouses were entitled to some of the winnings.
Keeping His Family On Their Toes
When asked about his decision, Li said it was a pre-emptive action to keep his family from being dependent on his money.
