Arabic version: صياد من داروين يفوز بجائزة باراموندي قيمتها مليون دولار

According to The Guardian, Darwin angler Matthew Maurice has won $1m after catching an 80cm red-tagged barramundi during a night-time fishing trip with his brother. Maurice, 26, had finished football training before the pair took a boat out on Thursday evening while his sibling was visiting from overseas.

The brothers travelled less than a kilometre from the boat ramp, Maurice told Channel 7’s Sunrise. He said they wanted to fish and talk rather than focus on making a catch. When he hooked the barramundi and switched on his head torch, he saw its silver body and a bright red tag.

The tag marked the competition’s top prize. The Northern Territory’s Million Dollar Fish competition began on 1 October, with 100 barramundi carrying $10,000 prizes released into waterways alongside one fish worth $1m. Maurice said he learned the value of his catch only after turning it in. The NT chief minister, Lia Finocchiaro, reportedly told him she was about to give him “the best news of your life”.

Maurice said he planned to do something “smart” with the winnings, including buying a house, paying off what he needed to pay off and treating himself a little. He is the second top-prize winner in the competition’s 12-year history, following Katherine local Keegan Payne, who caught a $1m fish three years earlier. Sponsored by Tourism & Events Northern Territory, the competition runs until 31 March 2027; 96 tagged barramundi worth $10,000 each remain unclaimed across the Top End.