A former Toronto convenience store owner who scammed a customer out of a lottery ticket worth $5.7 million will spend a year in jail, an Ontario court ruled Tuesday.

Hafiz Malik, 63, pleaded guilty to the charge last December.

The crime occurred in June 2004, when customer Lorraine Teicht came to Malik's Dupont Street store to check a ticket she had purchased with her co-workers.

Instead of telling the woman about the huge jackpot, Malik instead said the ticket was worth $10. He then kept hold of the ticket himself and claimed the winnings in January 2005.

After claiming the winnings, Malik moved from a small apartment to a large home in Mississauga. He also purchased expensive cars, including a Mercedes and a Land Rover.

The fraud was discovered after Teicht's friends investigated the matter and then passed it on to the Ontario Provincial Police.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. paid out Teicht's friends and gave them $800,000 in interest. However, the 56-year-old Teicht passed away from cancer in April.

Crown prosecutors had asked that Malik spend two-and-a-half years in jail, but the defence asked for a conditional sentence because Malik is remorseful.