Man ended up in jail just six months after winning £6.5 million on lottery

A man who hit the jackpot when he won £6.5 million on the lottery ended up in jail six months later - after burning through his fortune.

Lee Ryan won the coveted prize in March 1995, but has since branded his big win as a 'curse'.

PA

At the time of his imprisonment for handling stolen cars, Ryan was branded the 'Lotto lag' when he was sentenced to eighteen months in prison.

Although he only served nine of those months, he will still go down in history as the first British lottery millionaire to end up behind bars.

Years later, Ryan's high life was a thing of a past, as he was believed to be renting a two room flat in South London and earning under £10,000 a year.

Despite this, Ryan insisted in 2014 that he was happier with his current life than he was during his time as a millionaire.

He had first prayed to be rich whilst serving a sentence in 1986.

Ryan said: "My cellmate warned me to be careful what I wished for.

"The money was a curse."

His winnings were splashed on a £1 million country mansion alongside a fleet of luxury cars, including a Porsche, a Bentley, a Ferrari and a BMW.

Each car came with a personalised license plate - LEE 1, LEE 2, LEE 3 and LEE 4.

Lee Ryan

The family home had a swimming pool, tennis court, sauna, jacuzzi and games room.

However, winning came with its own shortcomings, as Ryan and his family received death threats.

Speaking to The Daily Record, one of Ryan's friends said: "When he was first sent to prison, the other inmates were falling over themselves to befriend him because of his money.

"But some powerful people have now apparently turned against him because of his attitude.

"He has taken the threats seriously and is determined that Karen and the kids will be looked after until he comes out."

To compensate, Ryan beefed up security at his house to include hi-tech cameras and hired a bodyguard.

Things soon fell apart for Ryan and he split with his wife in 2003.

After spending some time with a new partner over in Kyrgyzstan, Ryan returned to Britain in 2010 - where he spent two months sleeping on the streets in a sleeping bag.

Ryan said: "I travelled all over the country. I bumped into what I call 'living angels' where I am not asking anybody for anything and someone turns up saying, 'Are you all right, mate?'".

It’s now thought Ryan, now in his 60s, works as a cameraman and still lives in his South London flat, where he claims to host homeless people as guests.