FOR two friends with checkered pasts it was the luck of a lifetime: a 4 million-pound (US$5.2 million) lottery win.

But Mark Goodram and Jon-Ross Watson may see their celebrations cut short.

The Sun newspaper reports that Britain’s National Lottery is withholding the payout as it investigates whether the men, who have a string of criminal convictions, used illicit means to buy the winning ticket.

The pair’s social media accounts show them celebrating with cocktails and champagne, and they posed for a Sun photographer with their winning scratch card.

The Sun said neither man has a bank account, leading lottery organizers to investigate how they obtained the bank-issued debit card that paid for the 10-pound card.

Camelot, which runs the lottery, said Friday it couldn’t confirm details of the story because of winner-anonymity rules. The firm said it holds a “thorough investigation” if there is any doubt about a claim.

Goodram and Watson, from Bolton in northwestern England, have a long history of run-ins with the law. They have both appeared on police-issued lists of “Bolton’s most wanted” for failing to appear in court over assorted offenses including burglary and theft. (SD-Agencies)