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A California man says he won the lottery twice — but the state isn't convinced. Faramarz Lahijani, who already claimed half of a $394 million Mega Millions jackpot, is now suing for the other half, arguing he bought both winning tickets.
The catch? He lost the second one. Now, state officials are asking a judge to throw out his case, saying the rules are clear: no ticket, no payout.
The state is asking for the case to be dismissed
While Faramarz Lahijani has filed a lawsuit against the California Lottery, state officials are now asking the court to dismiss this court case.
In court papers filed on Monday, February 24, 2025, the Attorney General's Office has asked the court to dismiss this trial, stating that the argument by Faramarz Lahijani doesn't add up.
In the court papers filed with Judge Lia Martin, KFI-AM reported a deputy attorney general representing the lottery stated:
Payment of a Mega Millions prize without the submission of a valid winning ticket is expressly barred by the Mega Millions game rules and by applicable California statutes and regulations.
Two winning tickets — one big jackpot
This all dates back to December 8, 2023, when two tickets purchased at the same Chevron gas station in Encino, California, matched all of the winning numbers for that night's Mega Millions drawing. The winning numbers were 21, 26, 53, 66, and 70, and the Mega Ball was 13.
The jackpot for that night was $394 million, and since then, one lucky winner (Faramarz Lahijani) has come forward to claim half of the winnings ($197 million). However, the second lucky winner never came forward, and the ticket expired on Saturday, December 7, 2024.
Winner files lawsuit
Despite the expiration date passing with no one claiming the second half of that big Mega Millions jackpot, there was a new twist to the story. Lahijani filed a lawsuit against the California Lottery back in December 2024, just hours before the ticket was set to expire, claiming he had both of the winning tickets, but he only got half of the total prize he was owed for the Mega Millions win.
Lahijani claims he bought both of the winning tickets from that Chevron gas station in Encino. He states he used the same numbers on both the tickets he purchased, and he's been using these same numbers for the past 30 years.
He filed a claim with the lottery commission on December 4, 2024, for the other half of the winnings but admitted that he did not have the second ticket. In his lawsuit, he states he is the only winner because “by virtue of his having timely submitted the first matching ticket, plaintiff is entitled to the entirety of the jackpot.”
Despite that claim, lottery officials said Lahijani lost the second ticket and without a winning ticket present, he is not eligible to receive the winnings and the case should be dismissed.
Now we wait for word back from the judge regarding the paperwork filed by the state, but a hearing for the case was scheduled for October 29.
Enjoy playing the California Lottery, and please remember to play responsibly.
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