The National Lottery wrongly paid a convicted fraudster and rapist £2.5 million after he allegedly used a fake ticket to fraudulently claim the jackpot, it has emerged.

Edward Putman, 51, was paid the sum by Camelot in 2009 using a ticket which Camelot now says was "deliberately damaged".

His victory at the time caused outrage after it emerged that he had been convicted of rape and went on to fraudulently claim benefits after his multimillion pound "win".

But on Friday it emerged that Putman - who used the 'winnings' to buy two homes in Kings Langley, Hertfordshire, worth a combined £1.2m and a fleet of sports cars - should never have been paid the money.