Man offers to split winnings after thieves win jackpot with his credit card

A Frenchman has appealed to two thieves who used his stolen credit card to purchase a jackpot-winning scratch card to come forward, promising to split the €500,000 (£413,664) prize with them.

Introducing himself as Jean-David E, the man told RTL radio that since the money would otherwise be seized by the authorities, he is looking to strike a deal with the thieves.

"Without me, they would not have won, but without them, I would not have bought this ticket. I want to offer them to share the winnings," the Toulouse resident said.

No one has so far come forward with the winning ticket, which has been blocked by Française des Jeux (FDJ), the operator of France's national lottery, according to Jean-David.

Jean-David discovered that his backpack containing his wallet had been stolen from his car parked in central Toulouse on the 3 February.

After calling his bank to block his credit card, he discovered that €52.50 (£43.47) had been spent via a contactless payment at Tabac des Thermes, a nearby corner shop. Jean-David went to the shop to see if the staff had seen anything suspicious or if any of his belongings had been abandoned at the shop.

"My client spoke to the cashier and discovered that two men who appeared to be homeless used his credit card to purchase cigarettes and several scratch cards", Jean-David's lawyer, Pierre Debuisson told the BBC.

The two men told the cashier that they had won the €500,000 jackpot on one of the cards and that they were planning on going to FDJ to claim their winnings.

The cashier found the two men's behaviour suspicious as they were unable to enter the PIN number of one of the cards they attempted to make the purchase with, according to Jean-David.

After his conversation with the cashier, Jean-David contacted the local police who in turn reached out the FDJ to alert the games company.

The police are now likely to seize the winnings and should the thieves approach the FDJ themselves, they are likely to be arrested, according to Jean-Davide.

Scratch card winners have 30 days from the date of purchase to claim their winnings, and for Jean-Davide and his unlikely collaborators, the deadline is fast approaching.

His lawyer Mr Debuisson proposed an amnesty: "My client was very happy to have his credit card stolen in these circumstances and so is not looking to prosecute. This is also a miraculous opportunity for these two men to build a new life for themselves."

"Unless they contact my lawyer, the ticket is unusable. So why not settle amicably and do fifty-fifty?," 40-year-old Jean-David told RTL.

"For that amount of money, I'm ready to come to an agreement", he added, explaining that he would use his share of the winnings - €250,000 (£206,988) - to help pay off his mortgage.

The FDJ and Toulouse police has been approached for comment.