Two players hit $394M Mega Millions jackpot at same CA store. One winner comes forward
Two players won the $394 million Mega Millions jackpot during the December 8 drawing after buying tickets from the same gas station in Southern California.
Now, one winner has come forward to claim their half of the prize and has been identified as F. Lahijani, according to the California Lottery.
Lahijani won $197,500,000.
The two winners matched the game’s white balls 21, 26, 53, 66 and 70, and the gold Mega Ball 13.
Both players bought lottery tickets from a Chevron gas station in Encino, a neighborhood in Los Angeles, lottery officials said.
“This has never happened before, and we want to congratulate the owners of this particular retail location!” California Lottery spokesperson Carolyn Becker said in the release.
The second jackpot winner has one year from the drawing date to claim their portion of the prize, officials said.
The cash prize option for the $394 million jackpot is $188.6 million — or $94.3 million per player.
What to know about Mega Millions
To score the jackpot in the Mega Millions, a player must match all five white balls and the gold Mega Ball.
The odds of scoring a jackpot prize are 1 in 302,575,350.
Tickets cost $2 and can be bought on the day of the drawing, but sales times vary by state.
Drawings are held Tuesdays and Fridays at 11 p.m. ET and can be streamed online.
Mega Millions is played in 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
This story was originally published June 26, 2024 at 9:46 AM with the headline "Two players hit $394M Mega Millions jackpot at same CA store. One winner comes forward."
