James Hayes, 55, has been slapped with an 80-year prison sentence for the robberies he committed last year, The Sun reports.

He was arrested by the FBI after a tip-off linked him to as many as 10 robberies across California, though he only admitted four.

Mr Hayes took £7,000 at a time, telling witnesses it was for a “family emergency”, though the court heard he took the money to feed the £720 per week heroin habit he developed following his lottery win.

At the time of winning the jackpot, he said he planned to spend it to “help out my family and friends in need”.