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An unusual sequence of numbers drawn in South Africa’s national lottery has sparked accusations of fraud after 20 people won a share of the jackpot.
Tuesday’s PowerBall lottery saw the numbers five, six, seven, eight and nine drawn, while the PowerBall itself was, you have guessed it, 10.
The organisers say the sequence is often picked. But some have alleged a scam and an investigation is under way.
It is extremely rare for multiple winners to share the jackpot.
The organisers said 20 people purchased a winning ticket and won 5.7m rand ($370,000; £278,000) each.
Another 79 ticketholders won 6,283 rand each for guessing the sequence from five up to nine but missing the PowerBall.
The odds of the draw resulting in the numbers seen in Tuesday’s televised live event are the same as any other combination. Competitions resulting in multiple winners are rare, but this may have something to do with this particular sequence.
“Congratulations to tonight’s 20 winners of the PowerBall draw,” lottery operator Ithuba tweeted, adding: “These numbers may be unexpected, but we see many players opt to play these sequences.”
On Wednesday, people took to social media to share their thoughts.
Others called for an inquiry into Tuesday’s winning lottery result and the competition’s regulator, South Africa’s National Lotteries Commission (NLC), said it would investigate the draw, which it called unprecedented.
A spokesman for NLC, Ndivhuho Mafela, said the body would review the incident and report its findings.
