Press release

Montréal, April 16, 2026 — Every week, Pierre Fortier goes to the same convenience store to get his lottery tickets validated. During Fortier’s visit on the week of April 13, the shop owner informed him that he’d won Lotto 6/49’s $5,000,000 Classic Jackpot!

“I still haven’t told anyone I’ve won.”

• Fortier says he’s been carrying on his father’s “tradition” of playing Lotto 6/49.
• He shared with us how he found out he’d won $5,000,000 in the April 1 draw: “Every week when I go in, before the store owner validates my tickets, he asks me whether I’ve won. I never check my tickets before I go, so I found out I won right then and there! The owner was so happy for me.” 
• When Fortier came to pick up his prize, he told us: “I still haven’t told anyone I’ve won.” However, he knows who he wants to tell first: his brother.
• The winner says he has no intention of quitting his job. In fact, he only just came out of retirement to give his former employer a helping hand. Rather, he says he’ll use the money to renovate his home, “which is in dire need.” He added with a laugh: “My win couldn’t have come at a better time!” 

The winning ticket was purchased at Dépanneur Grignoterie, located on the corner of Rue Saint-Zotique Est and Rue Chambord, in the La Petite-Patrie neighbourhood. The retailer will receive a 1% commission of $50,000.

About Loto-Québec

Loto-Québec has been delivering entertainment to Quebecers for over 55 years, and its operations benefit Québec as a whole. In 2025, the corporation paid out over $1.7 billion in prizes to winners and crowned 105 millionaires across Québec. Among these prizes, it paid out nearly 20 lifetime annuities, a record! Major prize winners are listed on the Winners page in the Lotteries section of lotoquebec.com. Discover their dreams.

The responsible commercialization of lottery and gaming products is central to Loto-Québec’s operations. The corporation has been granted the highest internationally recognized certification in responsible gaming by the World Lottery Association.