BRASILIA (Reuters) - The winner of a $16 million lottery jackpot in Brazil escaped his own father’s plot to kill him after police caught two contract killers supposedly hired to carry out his murder, local media reported on Friday.

Police informed Fabio de Barros of the plan by his father, Francisco, to have him killed in order to keep the winnings the two had fought over since Fabio won the prize in 2006, O Globo TV and the Agencia Estado reported.

A legal battle began after Francisco, 60, refused to hand over the winnings Fabio had deposited in his account. They had not spoken for about three years, Fabio’s lawyer said.

Francisco was arrested in Cuiaba in western Brazil on Wednesday. Agencia Estado said police learned of the murder plot during monitoring of phone conversations between the two men accused of working as guns-for-hire.