A MUM who was a millionaire with everything she ever wanted ended up broke and with bailiffs at her house.
Lara Griffiths and her husband at the time, Roger, scooped £1.8million in 2005 on the Lotto jackpot.
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Believing their lives had changed forever they publicised their windfall and reportedly started splashing the cash on expensive cars and homes.
But Lara claims their lifestyle wasn’t extravagant and they didn’t spend “anywhere near” the amount that was made out.
Roger ended up walking out on Lara and their home in Leeds in 2011 – leaving the mum-of-two devastated .
She claims she found emails between him and a mate that indicated that he was planning an affair with a friend – something he strongly denies.
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That same year, Roger told her that he only had £7 left in his bank account as the bailiffs came knocking.
Lara said she doesn’t know where all the money went but admits a “myriad of things went wrong”.
She said: “The cars were always second-hand. We had a mortgage on the house. And we had one holiday in Dubai.
“We were incapable of making financial choices on our own.
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“Something that would help invest and manage the money positively. We didn’t know how to do that.
“We set ourselves up for a fall.”
I was so excited by my £400,000 winning lottery scratchcard I left it in the shop
Lara claims after their split there were bailiffs turning up for debts she knew nothing about.
Roger admits he made a “dreadful mistake” by falling behind on mortgage repayments on a rental property they’d bought, which resulted in it being repossessed.
Now, 11 years on from their bitter divorce in 2013, former school teacher Lara, 53, works seven days a week running a tattoo parlour and make-up studio from a shed in her garden.
She told The Sun in an exclusive chat: “I spend all my money on my two kids and I’m not complaining about that.
“We live in the house [Roger and I] bought before the lottery and I have a tattooing business which is successful.
“I work seven days a week. I love my job and I love my clients. A lot of my ex-pupils are customers. I consider myself incredibly lucky. I’ve got a nice life.”
Recalling the moment Roger left the family home, Lara says: “How do you process that? I had a four-year-old and a seven-year-old daughter.
“I think I just stood and screamed. I just couldn’t wrap my head around it.
“He maintained he had not had an affair and that he was planning on it but hadn’t acted it out.
“And that it was just a catalyst for him leaving me because I was a s**t wife.
“I was really struggling emotionally because my dad had just died only recently so things were quite fractious at home. I couldn’t wrap my head around the way he handled it.”
In a statement to The Sun, Roger claims he had simply fallen “out of love” with Lara and was “dreadfully unhappy”.
Lara admits their marriage was not perfect, but says they seemed happy.
They tied the knot in 1997 within six months of getting together, and she considered him to be her “best friend” despite them being “complete opposites”.
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She says she trusted he would never cheat on her and used to joke she could “send Roger with a prostitute and he would never turn his eye”.
Lara earned £40,000 a year as a teacher and Roger took home similar when he bought the winning lottery ticket.
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