A Florida-based Irish priest home on holidays for Christmas has won €500,000 on the EuroMillions Plus draw.

The retired cleric, who is originally from Co. Mayo, today visited the National Lottery’s “winner’s room” to claim his prize won on a “quick pick” ticket bought in the Donnybrook Fair shop in Malahide, north Dublin, on December 22nd.

In a statement released by Premier Lotteries Ireland, operator of the National Lottery, the unnamed priest joked that God must be listening to his prayers, as this is not his first lottery win.

He revealed he at one time won £15,000 in pre-Euro Irish pounds on the old Irish Sweepstakes, which was replaced by the National Lottery 30 years ago. He also won amounts of $3,000 and $5,000 over the years in lotteries in the USA.

But he pledged to share his winnings with those in need.

“I suppose you can say I am lucky. But I have always had a policy of sharing my luck around. That is something that my late mother taught me, and something that was also drummed into me when I was a young priest by a Bishop.

“I am a big believer that what goes around comes around. This is a huge amount of money and I look forward to giving some back.”

The priest heard last Saturday that one of the two winning EuroMillions Plus tickets was purchased in Donnybrook Fair in Malahide.

“I didn’t get too excited when I heard this first. I went back to the shop and gave the ticket to the same girl I had purchased it from to be checked. Lo and behold, there was a message on the system to contact the National Lottery! So I knew at that stage I had won.”

The winner, who enjoys regular visits back to Ireland and the West, said he spent a lovely Christmas day with relatives in Dublin and he let news of his good fortune slowly sink in. His family are delighted with his news.

Meanwhile, Tatiana Rusu, who works in Donnybrook Fair in Malahide, was the person who sold the winning ticket.

Ms Rusu said the winner came back into the shop on Wednesday and told her he had won, and that he would be collecting the winnings on Thursday.

“He said he won the €500,000 and he bought another two tickets. He said, ‘I can’t wait to go to collect the money’” she said. Tatiana said she told him, “If you’re going to keep playing you’re going to win again, you’re the lucky one.”

She knew he was not a local from Malahide and thought he may have been visiting for Christmas. He came to the store on his own, and purchased a bottle of wine and some mince pies as well, Tatiana recalled.

“He was lucky, that’s all I can say” she said, also describing him as “a nice gentleman”.

“All I said to him was, ‘I wish you all the best and good luck’,” she added.

Ms Rusu said she reckoned the man was in his 70s, and described him as tall, bald and well-dressed.

She has been playing the Lotto in Ireland since she moved here in 2004, but the most she had ever won was € 36, she said.

Originally from Moldova, Ms Rusu previously worked in the Donnybrook Fair store in south Dublin, before swapping to the north Dublin branch as it was closer to her home in Swords.