From the Nigeria Magazine Desk
A Romanian-born mathematician, Stefan Mandel, became famous for winning multiple lottery jackpots through a mathematical strategy that challenged the traditional way people approached lottery games.
Born in 1931 into a poor Jewish family in Romania, Mandel worked as an accountant under communist rule, earning approximately $88 a month. Determined to improve his financial situation, he began studying the mathematics behind lottery systems and developed a strategy based on calculating the possible combinations of winning numbers.
His approach involved identifying lotteries with a limited number of possible combinations and purchasing enough tickets to cover every combination when the jackpot was significantly higher than the total cost of the tickets.
Mandel first tested his strategy in Romania in 1965, winning a prize reportedly equivalent to 18 years of his salary. The money helped him relocate with his family, eventually settling in Australia, where he expanded the system by bringing together investors to finance large-scale ticket purchases.
Through these investment syndicates, Mandel and his associates reportedly won 12 lottery jackpots in Australia during the 1980s, including a $1.1 million prize in 1986. His success eventually attracted attention from lottery authorities, prompting changes to lottery regulations.
