Pesaro, June 6, 2026 – Wins 500 thousand euros with a Scratch and Win, but cannot collect them because he is without a residence permit. To unlock that fortune, he had to go through the court, which eventually recognized his right to special protection. And that money became the capital to open a shop in Falconara.
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The escape to Italy
It is the story of Imagbe Ehizomwengie, a 36-year-old Nigerian, who said he fled to Italy in 2016 to escape the obligation, imposed by family tradition, to join a secret sect of which his father was one of the spiritual leaders.
The lucky Scratch and Win
The man, an undocumented immigrant, had bought that Scratch and Win in November 2025, while working as a street vendor and begging near a supermarket in Pesaro. And when he found himself facing that win, he was speechless. Instead of celebrating, however, he found himself facing a wall.
But without a residence permit
Without a residence permit, he was unable to open a bank account and was forced to entrust the winnings to a compatriot, then his friend, who agreed to collect the prize and keep it until his regularization. According to what was reconstructed in the appeal presented by lawyers Andrea Palazzeschi and Sara Innocenti, however, after the credit, the relationship would have deteriorated. The entrusted man would have started behaving as if that money was his, so much so that the intervention of other members of the Nigerian community would have been necessary.
The agreement, the division of winnings and the purchase of the shop
In the end, they reached an agreement: about 250 thousand euros were transferred to the winner’s cousin’s account, to bring that money back into the family. With that sum, a commercial activity in Falconara Marittima, “Mama African”, was purchased, where the 36-year-old was supposed to work once he obtained his documents.
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The course of justice and the recognition of the right to stay
The matter ended up in court and the judges of Ancona recognized his right to stay. In 2022, in fact, he had asked the Pesaro and Urbino Police Headquarters for the issuance of a residence permit for special protection, but the request had been rejected. Against that denial, notified last February, he appealed to the Court of Ancona.
Not having a residence permit, he could not open an account and therefore could not directly collect the winnings
“The situation was like a dog chasing its tail – explains lawyer Andrea Palazzeschi –. Not having a residence permit, he could not open an account and therefore could not directly collect the winnings.” In the sentence filed on June 4, the Court of Ancona held that the man had built a concrete path of integration in Italy, valuing work, knowledge of the Italian language, family ties, and the absence of criminal records. For this reason, it annulled the Police Headquarters’ provision and ordered the issuance of a residence permit for special protection.
the Court held that the man had built a concrete path of integration, valuing work and knowledge of the Italian language
