Microgaming’s Mega Moolah delivers again
News on 22 Jun 2016
News on 22 Jun 2016
New Zealand fast food worker Rawiri Pou (27) is NZ $10,144,395.82 (US $7.2 million) better off this week following Tuesday’s presentation of his major jackpot win on Microgaming‘s Mega Moolah progressive slot, which took place June 17.
Pou’s big hit happened at the Casinoland online casino, and was preceded by a NZ$1,500 reward which he decided to continue playing, leading to the mega-win.
Microgaming progressive jackpots are always paid out in one tranche.
Pou told reporters that he was still coming to terms with being a wealthy man, and at present has no immediate plans to stop working.
The publication Newshub notes that whilst a major win, this is not the biggest progressive jackpot hit on record; that distinction goes to another Mega Moolah jackpot of Euro 17.9 million won by a British soldier at Betway online casino last October.
UPDATE:
Taking some of the gilt of the happy occasion that is Rawiri Pou’s big win was an almost immediate reaction from the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs, which said it was looking into the “suspicious” $10 million win after a report from the Problem Gambling Foundation.
The Problem Gambling Foundation opined it’s illegal to promote an international online gambling site in NZ and advised local players to be cautious.
Andree Froude from the Foundation said she was concerned about Malta-licensed Casinoland, saying:
“Our concern is that it’s not legal to promote an overseas online gambling site in New Zealand so we have made a complaint to the DIA (Department of Internal Affairs) and they are investigating it.”
Froude [incorrectly] added: “Online gambling in this environment is unregulated. This is an overseas site, we know there are lots of scams, so we want people to be very, very cautious.”
Pou paid $250 to Casinoland’s online gambling website. He won $1500 and put it back for the Jackpot round, local news reports indicated.
The Department of Internal Affairs responded to news media enquiries by saying:
“CasinoLand has not been brought to the Department’s attention but, based on reports of other large so-called “wins” in online lottery scams, it is suspicious. The Department will be following up the report.”
What? “Lottery wins?”
In a statement to Maori television station Te Kāea, Casinoland said that it takes problem gambling very seriously and players should gamble in moderation.
