Some of the real estate that was in the lottery, with tickets that each cost 250 pesos, or about $12. Photo: Lotería Nacional de México
The house featuring a hot tub with a secret tunnel that El Chapo used to avoid capture is one of 22 properties seized from kingpins that Mexico raffled off yesterday in a special edition of the lotería.
What’s happening: The property in Sinaloa was one of the prizes, along with mansions that once belonged to Amado Carrillo, alias “El Señor de los Cielos,” and U.S.-born Édgar Valdez Villarreal, aka “La Barbie.”
- The winning lot also included a box seat in the Azteca stadium, host of several historic World Cup matches, for use until 2065.
- The special drawing was part of Mexico’s bicentennial celebrations today, commemorating independence from Spain. Winners will be kept anonymous for now.
- The $9.9 million in sales were promised to Mexican Paralympians, who won 22 medals in Tokyo despite the government cuts to their budget.
Of note: Mexican authorities had already attempted to auction off El Chapo’s former home a year ago. There were no buyers.
- This is the first national lottery with real estate as a prize, though the government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador previously also tried to give away the presidential plane. The attempt was unsuccessful.
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