Lottery woman unlucky in love

A woman being sued by her ex-boyfriend for half her pounds 1.3m Lottery fortune told a court yesterday: "I wanted to get rid of him for years." Lisa Lee, 30, said that although David Jones was the father of her two children, he had never given them any financial support.

Miss Lee, who scooped her prize in 1995 with a ticket bought with her own money, ended the 12-year relationship with Mr Jones, 34, two months after the win, Cardiff County Court has heard. "Since the birth of my daughter, I realised the type of person he was ... I struggled for years to bring my children up alone; he has never contributed to anything."

Cross-examined, Miss Lee, who now lives with her daughter Kate, six, and son Jacob, two, in a pounds 300,000 home in Swansea, said she earned pounds 90 a week as a cleaner and never received anything from Mr Jones. Denying suggestions by Mr Jones's counsel, Carolyn Walton, that they bought the Lottery ticket together, Miss Lee said she spent only pounds 1 a week and she alone bought the ticket with her own cash.

"David always said the Lottery was a waste of money. He never bought a ticket."

Miss Lee said she watched the draw on television and shouted to Mr Jonest to bring a pen so she could recheck the numbers. She insisted she shouted "I've won, I've won" and not "We've won."

Although she agreed Mr Jones accompanied her to Camelot's offices to receive the cheque, it was only to drive the car. She did not like driving on motorways, she said.

Miss Lee agreed Mr Jones had been at some meetings with investment advisers but denied they planned to buy a house jointly in the Cotswolds to avoid local publicity in Swansea about the win. "I didn't treat him as a partner," she said.

"David stated from the start that the money was nothing to do with him. He said it was my money. He was going to come and stay with me until he found a flat in the area." The court has heard that Mr Jones, unemployed, was a self-confessed social-security cheat facing prosecution if he is not able to repay the Benefits Agency.

The hearing was adjourned to today.