Man gives lotto tickets to unemployed

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MALAGA, Spain, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A Spanish man who handed out free lottery tickets at benefits offices said he wanted to relieve some of the "sadness" faced by the unemployed.

Bartolome Florido, 60, a driving instructor in the Costa del Sol region, said he spent nearly $2,000 on the 333 lottery tickets he handed out to those waiting in jobless benefits lines in five cities, ThinkSpain reported Tuesday.

"I went through the dole queue in Malaga, Torremolinos, Benalmadena, Sevilla and Arroyo de la Miel, asking everyone if they were unemployed, and if they said yes, I gave them a ticket with the number 11.946," Florido said. "A lot of them asked me, 'how much is it?' and when I said, nothing, it was a present, many of them hugged me and cried."

Florido said he wanted to relieve some of the "sadness" and despair of the unemployed people and give them hope for the future.

All of the lottery tickets Florido purchased have the same numbers, 11.946, and will each pay out $26,352 if the numbers win.

Florido said he saw significance in the number when he saw a ticket at the store.

"My father died in 1964, aged 46, and it seemed like a sign," he said.