A LOTTO winner who scooped £9.3 million has been caught on camera attacking a pal with a pool cue in a booze-fuelled rage.
Our shocking footage shows Paul Long, who hit the jackpot in 2018, wielding the cue as he lashes out at the reveller in the kitchen of his home.
A lotto winner who scooped £9.3 million has been caught on camera attacking a pal[/caption]
Paul Long wielded the pool cue while intoxicated[/caption]
He invited three people back to his four-bedroom Essex home[/caption]
Lotto winner Paul Long celebrating his jackpot win back in March 2018[/caption]
The terrifying attack came after Mr Long – who went public after his Lucky Dip ticket win – invited two men and a woman he’d met in a pub back to his swanky pad.
But the night turned sour, amid claims the Lotto winner’s mood darkened – and one of his guests starting recording him on his phone.
After he is struck with the thick end of the cue, the man is heard shouting “oooh, hey, hey, hey” as he recoils in pain.
His pool cue attack victim – who called police after the incident – said he “sensed danger” before he started filming Leyton Orient fan Mr Long, 62.
He said: “I don’t normally record things, but I just felt something wasn’t right.
“He was acting strangely, and I thought, ‘This is dodgy’, so I pressed record.
“I had a strong gut instinct and was proved right. Then the attack came out of the blue and was quite random.
“Luckily the cue clipped the side of my head and then smashed into a kitchen cupboard.
“I was shaking like a leaf afterwards and really scared.
“I called police but then left – as I didn’t want to stay there and be anywhere near him.
“Afterwards, I was left thinking that it could have had really bad consequences.
“I could have been seriously hurt, or paralysed.
“The sound is sickening. If that hit me square, I’d be in hospital.
“He came at me with everything he had.
“A pool cue is a weapon that could kill someone and this was a proper swing.
“If I hadn’t moved, it could have caved my head in.
“I have had nightmares about it – I have kids myself and they could have been affected by this too.
“And I am worried what he is capable of.
“I don’t know what he was like before but I’m not sure this Lottery win has been good for him.
“His behaviour was disgraceful and he should be held to account.”
Lotto winner Paul Long in Leyton Orient shirt and scarf[/caption]
He won nearly £10million seven years ago[/caption]
The attack happened in April after Mr Long – a Dad of three adult children – met the group in Channels Bar, near Chelmsford.
They struck up conversation after one of them showed Long a crypto-trading platform on his phone and he replied that he was “worth a few bob myself”.
After buying them drinks he invited the trio – a boyfriend and girlfriend plus their male pal – back to his four-bedroom Essex home.
They carried on drinking and Mr Long and one of his guests played pool on the table he has in his open-plan pad.
Our source added: “We started talking in the bar and he was giving it the big’un a bit.
“He kept saying, ‘Do you want a drink? What are you having? Don’t worry, I’ll get it.’
“At first it just seemed generous, but it started getting a bit much – and then he told us he was a Lottery winner.
“He was saying things like, ‘I’m very comfortable. I’ve done well for myself. Come back to mine’.”
The couple Mr Long had met drove back to his home, where their after-party got off to a “friendly start”.
‘WANTING A ROW’
Mr Long offered his guests beer and vodka and they chatted over games of pool.
But his guest said Mr Long was drinking heavily and appeared “depressed” before his mood switched.
He added: “He seemed upset and angry about something, but that’s no excuse for violence.”
When he wielded the upside down cue at the reveller, the other two guests were just outside the back doors of the property.
Further footage shows the couple coming in and trying to calm down the Lotto multi-millionaire.
The man is heard saying, “What the hell.” While his girlfriend accused Mr Long of being “very f***ed or senile and wanting a row”.
She added: “You are taking the p*** out of me and you have been all night. We are leaving.
“We have come round here thinking you’re nice and normal.”
Essex Police confirmed they were called to a “disturbance” in the early hours of April 3 – but officers left after being unable to find the problem.
When he hit the jackpot in March 2018, former Ford car worker Mr Long said he celebrated with a cup of tea.
And he said he bought his Lucky Dip ticket after deciding his beloved Leyton Orient‘s 3-0 win over Woking that Saturday was a good omen.
He added: “I’m just a normal guy, I don’t want a Lamborghini.
“I would never buy something like a £100,000 car because that’s just not who I am.”
‘OUT OF ORDER’
Asked by The Sun about that attack, Mr Long said: “I’m not disputing what happened.
“But I don’t remember swinging the pool cue. I was drunk and I’m pretty blank about that night.
“I have been back to the pub and asked about him saying I could owe him an apology – but he hasn’t been in apparently.”
Mr Long showed us a crack on a kitchen cupboard he said was caused by the cue.
He said: “The next day there was a car on my drive and the guy with the girl came back.
“I spoke to them and said I couldn’t remember last night, but was there a problem?
“They said, ‘You swung a pool cue at him.’
“They said I was out of order and I couldn’t remember why. I said, ‘whatever happened I’m really sorry.’
“He apparently got scared and went. But I think it hit the kitchen cupboard, and the police have not come to the house.
“They know I’m a Lottery winner and people are going to say things.
“They have put legs on it, and I’m a bit upset by it all.”