Winner of lottery commits suicide

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32775, 27 November 1971, Page 17

Winner of lottery commits suicide

(N.Z. Press Assn.—Copyright)

SYDNEY, Nov. 26.

A 42-year-old Sydney man who shared in a $200,000 lottery win two years ago has been found dead in his car, which was filled with carbon monoxide.

Peter Newell, the father of six children, received $33,000 from a sixth share in the first prize in the New South Wales Opera House lottery in August, 1969. His widow, Mrs Norma Newell, lives at Mount Pritchard, with the children, five boys and a girl aged from three to 17 years. Last night, Mrs Newell said

her husband's initial joy turned into bouts of depression culminating in his death on Wednesday night. She said cynical treatment by his workmates at a refrigeration factory forced Mr Newell to abandon his job as a machinist, after being ribbed about his win. “The other winners didn’t care about the ribbing, they just treated it as a joke,” said Mrs Newell. “But Pete was upset about it. He never went back much after that.” She said her husband couldn’t settle down, and, although he tried a few other jobs, he wasn’t as happy as he was in his original position.

In spite of his work problems Mr Newell paid for, renovated and extended the family home, and bought a car, a swimming pool and a boat. Mrs Newell said that in the last few months Mr Newell had become very depressed, and on Wednesday night he was found slumped at the wheel of his exhaust-gas-filled car in the garage of his home.