A $394 Million Lottery Win… With a Costly Twist
Winning the lottery is supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime moment. But for one California man, it turned into a cautionary tale about just how important a small piece of paper can be.
In December 2023, a Mega Millions drawing produced two winning tickets, both sold at the same gas station in Encino, California. The total jackpot? $394 million.
And surprisingly — one person claimed he bought both.
Two Winning Tickets, Same Numbers
According to court records, Faramarz Lahijani said he purchased two identical tickets using the same numbers he had played for decades: 21, 26, 53, 66, 70 with Mega Ball 13.
The California Lottery confirmed that two winning tickets were indeed sold at the Chevron station on Ventura Boulevard.
Months later, Lahijani came forward with one of the winning tickets and successfully collected $197.5 million, half of the total prize.
But the second ticket? He said he lost it.
The Lawsuit for the Missing Millions
Just days before the deadline to claim the prize, Lahijani attempted to collect the remaining $197.5 million — despite not having the physical ticket.
When the California Lottery denied the claim, he filed a lawsuit, arguing that because he had already proven ownership of one ticket, he should be entitled to the full jackpot.
The court didn’t agree.
Lottery officials pointed to a clear rule:
No physical ticket = no payout.
A judge ultimately ruled that the lottery was under no legal obligation to pay out winnings without a valid ticket, regardless of the circumstances.
Another Claimant Enters the Picture
As if the story couldn’t get more dramatic, another woman came forward claiming she had purchased the second winning ticket.
She stated that the ticket had been stolen by a former employer and argued that the California Lottery could verify her claim using transaction records and retailer data. She even offered to settle the case.
The judge rejected her request as well, stating that allowing claims without physical tickets would open the door to fraud, disputes, and unverifiable ownership claims.
Final Ruling: No Ticket, No Jackpot
In the end, no one received the remaining $197.5 million.
The court ruled that without a valid ticket, the prize could not be awarded — regardless of how convincing the story might be.
The Lesson Everyone Can Learn
If there’s one takeaway from this unbelievable story, it’s this:
Your lottery ticket is everything.
Lose it, and even hundreds of millions of dollars won’t matter.
Because when it comes to the lottery, the rule is simple:
No ticket. No proof. No payout.
