Two friends are planning to sue the National Lottery after being denied a £4million scratchcard win.
Mark Goodram, 36, and Jon-Ross Watson, 31, posed for photos with £50 notes and magnums of bubbly after learning about their victory.
However, Camelot suspects the scratchcard was bought with a stolen bank card, reports Mirror Online.
The winnings are now being withheld while Camelot investigates.
Watson and Goodram deny any wrongdoing and insist their win is legitimate.
The winning scratchcard was bought in Waitrose in Clapham, south London.
The duo have now hired barrister Henry Hedron, who gave Camelot until Tuesday (June 4) to pay up - but the money never arrived.
The lawyer told The Sun: "My clients have been very open and upfront about their upbringing in care homes and hard struggles in life, including previous substance misuse problems, which both have tried really hard to overcome.
“Camelot is in effect holding my clients ransom to their past.
“My clients consider Camelot are behaving in a culturally racist way by subjecting them to a level of scrutiny, checking and vetting, they would not otherwise do if the person who claimed the prize spoke in a posh accent."
A spokesperson for Camelot said: "Security procedures form a key part of the process of validating a winning ticket to ensure we maintain the integrity of The National Lottery.
"Should there be any doubt surrounding the validity of a claim, we would undertake a thorough investigation to ensure we pay out the rightful ticketholder."
