Winner accuses California Lottery of wrongfully denying second half of prize
By Kate Northrop
The California winner who claimed half of a $395 million Mega Millions jackpot sued the California Lottery for the other share of the prize, alleging that he is entitled to the second half.
On Friday, Faramarz Lahijani filed a lawsuit against the California Lottery for the other half of the $395 million Mega Millions jackpot, which expired over the weekend.
The lawsuit, obtained by Lottery Post, names the California State Lottery Commission, the California Lottery, and the State of California as defendants. In it, Lahijani alleges that he purchased both identical winning tickets at the Chevron gas station on Ventura Boulevard in Encino.
The numbers he used to buy the tickets "were long ago chosen by his children," and he has been "regularly" playing them for 30 years. They matched all five white ball numbers and the Mega Ball number in the Dec. 8 2023 drawing, which were 21, 26, 53, 66, and 70, with Mega Ball number 13.
After the drawing, Lahijani was able to locate one of the identical tickets, but since then has been unable to find the other. They were the only two jackpot-winning tickets in the draw and were therefore each valued at $197.5 million, or about half the $395 million jackpot.
Documents state that Lahijani purchased two Mega Millions tickets and "has not been paid the entire amount as the sole winner, and that he is "entitled to the entire jackpot from the 12/8/23 drawing as the sole winner."
The main supporting argument in the filings is Lahijani's belief that the California Lottery, the California Lottery Commission, and the State of California have sufficient information to prove that Lahijani is the rightful winner of the jackpot.
Additionally, the winner alleges that the purchase of lottery tickets created a contractual relationship between himself and the California Lottery. In breaching their contract and "unreasonably failing to honor" Lahijani's claim for the entire jackpot, the documents say, the Lottery did not uphold their "mandatory duty to ensure that the California State Lottery is administered and operated with integrity, security, honesty, and fairness."
The claim specifically accuses the Lottery of failing to enforce its own rules by improperly denying a valid prize-winning ticket. The California Lottery has allegedly not provided an explanation for why they did not identify Lahijani as the purchaser of both winning tickets.
Since the second winning ticket was due to expire on Dec. 8, 2024, Lahijani also submitted an official claim on Dec. 4, 2024 for the ticket "out of an abundance of caution to preserve all rights which he has to the entire December 8, 2023 Mega Millions jackpot."
The plaintiff goes on to say that he has suffered, and will continue to suffer, financial losses and interest from his would-be full jackpot amount as a result of the Lottery's refusal to award him both halves.
"Plaintiff has suffered financial hardship and emotional distress, including but not limited to, embarrassment, anxiety and mental anguish, all to his general damage in a sum in excess of $50,000.00," the lawsuit states.
Lahijani is seeking a resolution in which the Lottery declares him the owner of the second winning ticket and therefore the rightful claimant to the remaining funds from the $395 million Mega Millions jackpot.
Lahijani's lawsuit also covers the possibility that the Lottery does not determine that he purchased the second winning ticket, which cites California Lottery rules and regulations in effect as of the drawing on Dec. 8, 2023.
In the guide to California Lottery Regulations, a "winner" is defined as "a Player who is not a Disqualified Person, who legally acquires a winning Ticket and owns it at the time it is determined to be a winning Ticket either by a Draw or by scratching the play area."
By classifying himself as a "winner" under the Lottery's official rules and regulations, Lahijani is aiming to convey that he is still entitled to be awarded the entire Mega Millions jackpot, including the $197 million portion where no winning ticket was presented.
However, Lottery Post notes that the lawsuit does not quote the definition in full. It goes on to say: "Except as otherwise provided in these regulations, a Winner need not have purchased the Ticket; however, the Winner must Claim the Prize.
Under California Lottery rules and regulations, claiming a prize includes presenting a valid winning ticket alongside a claim form. The Lottery states the following under section 5.5.3. Delivery of Tickets and Claims:
"Winners bear sole responsibility for ensuring that winning Tickets or WVT Claim Receipts and Claim Forms reach the Lottery intact and within the applicable Claim Period. The Lottery is not responsible for Claims until they are successfully delivered to the Lottery. The Lottery is not responsible for late Claims or for postage-due, misdirected, misdelivered, stolen, or lost Tickets or Claims."
Under section 5.5.4. Security of Tickets, the Lottery also maintains that "players are solely responsible for securing their Tickets against theft, loss, damage, or destruction."
Next, the lawsuit cites a California Lottery regulation that states "winners for each prize level in a particular draw share equally in the prize pool for that prize level," which refers to California's pari-mutuel state laws regarding lottery prize amounts.
The lawsuit refers to this rule because it supports the plaintiff's argument that he is, by definition, the sole winner of the jackpot since there was no other claimant who submitted a valid ticket for the prize.
"As such, because plaintiff is the only "winner" by virtue of his having timely submitted the first matching ticket, plaintiff is entitled to the entirety of the jackpot from defendants," papers read.
Lahijani is seeking a declaratory judgment confirming him as the winner of the entire $395 million Mega Millions jackpot, as well as damages and costs incurred due to the suit. The plaintiff is demanding a trial by jury, the document concludes.
The case is currently pending. It was assigned to Judge Holly J. Fujie on Monday.
l did bet my life that both tickets are not quick pick and l also suggested one person bought both tickets by mistake maybe drinking too much so l will live to tell another day 😃🧑🎄
Can't see him winning the lawsuit and CA Lottery paying it. Lotteries require a winning ticket be presented, and he only presented one.
He's just being greedy. He won a big sum, isn't that enough?
If he kept track of his tickets, he wouldn't be in this mess.
Ridiculous lawsuit by a greedy person. Longstanding lottery policy is that jackpots are divided amongst winning tickets. No second valid winning ticket was presented and denied. I find it unbelievable that he would have divided up the tickets and stored them in different places.
I'd sure like to be "suffering" his financial losses. Sorry dude- no tickey, no prizey.
Woof, ridiculous? I think if I was in his position I would do the same thing. Clearly the guy purchased both tickets but lost one. If they have surveillance footage in the store it would be easy to prove he purchased it because the ticket purchases are date-stamped. So it's simply a matter of whether or not the courts would say that proof is enough to override the precise letter of the rules. I would roll the dice and go for it myself. If you're being honest, I think you would do the same for a shot at another $200M!
I would not do so. My best guess is that there is no video available or it was already checked. There is no statement alleging what is his proof and if there was video or other proof, he would have alleged that fact. The initial burden of proof is on him, not on the lottery.
They were his regular numbers but did he buy both of them at the same time or did he forget he bought one the day before and just repurchased it the next day. He should get the money but asking for damages and back interest on the unclaimed portion should not be awarded to his negligence of not securing the other ticket.
Of course if they go by time sale of tkt, that cld be the case
I always step to side and check my tickets
he may have overlooked and time stamp cld see if the computer was down and hesitated printing the tkt, something went wrong
Good thought
I I did that b4 but had the other tkt at home and cld not remember and played again to be sure
Another article has a quote by the lottery stating that it was only possible for the tickets to be purchased in separate transactions.
Common sense, dude. You need the other ticket to claim the second amount. He is definitely being greedy. Take your nice win and enjoy life.
I'm with Todd on this one, If I knew I had bought both tickets and couldn't find the other ticket then why not take it to the courts and see what they say.
Isn't California the state that "confiscates" the video from stores that sell the big jackpot tickets?
This additional info makes me think the second ticket was a quick pick.
Sorry Artist but the odds are insurmountable that someone got a quick pic that duplicated his long playing numbers and then lost the ticket and both tickets were purchased at the same location making it even more unlikely.
If two winning tickets are sold and one does not get claimed, isn't that equivalent to only one winning ticket being sold? Why should the government be awarded the second prize? Even if the winner of the first ticket didn't have a valid claim that he purchased both tickets, he should get the prize as if his was the only ticket.
When playing the same numbers on both Mega millions and Powerball it's very easy to make a mistake after 35 yrs this is exactly what happened to him But should we feel sorry for him at least he still has $197,000,000
Read the other articles. And, yes, it has happened before. I think a QP was printed out.
Just cuz the other person's an idiot doesn't mean you can call dibs on the whole. I don't think he bought the second ticket as he waited till the last day and the rules clearly state that it's your responsibility to protect your ticket. Don't expect someone else to clean up your mess.
"Plaintiff has suffered financial hardship and emotional distress, including but not limited to, embarrassment, anxiety and mental anguish, all to his general damage in a sum in excess of $50,000.00,"
This is outright laughable.
I agree that it's highly unlikely but doesn't mean it's impossible.
My gut feeling says it's a QP too.
So a quick pic came out of the same gas station that had the same winning numbers that he played there for over 30 years and the purchaser of that quick pic ticket lost it. Yes, that happens maybe every 8 months or so all the time.
If he did indeed buy both tickets, and the video evidence shows him buying both tickets, then he should get the other half of the jackpot.
The key to proving this is to get the video evidence. If I had bought both tickets, I would have called the store manager and had him look at the time stamped times to see what it showed. Then I would have paid the store manager to backup the video evidence to a flash drive (this is very easy to do with security camera systems -- I can do it in 2 minutes on the security DVR that I have)
A few years ago, I called a QuickTrip store when I saw a charge on a debit card that I thought was too large. I didn't remember that I took out $40 in cash in the same transaction, and the video showed it. Video evidence is great at proving the truth.
* l agree.
Even if he did purchase the second ticket he shouldn't have a claim unless he presents the other ticket. This sets a bad precedent.
Only exception would be if it was something out of his control. Stupidity shouldn't be rewarded.
I agree.
I do not view this case any better than the DC guy who purchased a PB ticket when the wrong winning numbers were posted online.
Again, as a plaintiff, why is the complaint not stating the store video would show he purchased both tickets? That would be his best evidence but interestingly, he is not making that claim. He is being very vague. Saying the lottery knows and he always plays those numbers has zero evidentiary value.
I think the lottery knows a lot more than it is saying due to the litigation.
I suffer from the same delusions as this guy. Id be the winner if I made the bet and have the ticket! Sorry pal the ticket is a " bearer instrument" You need to have the ticket
I wonder what was discussed when he cashed in his ticket earlier this year? He might have mentioned it to lotto officials .... and they may have told him "whoever" won with the 2nd ticket has one year to claim. This guy waited it out so that the lottery could weed out any and all fraudsters from making a claim.
I'm surprised we haven't read about any "other" claimants like we did with Edwin Castro.
At any rate ... Id suggest all parties concerned take a few deep breaths and go to their kitchen and prepare for themselves a liverwurst sandwich with ........
I can smell BS when he said he'd been playing the same numbers for 30 years. Next BS alarm went off when he said his kids picked the numbers which is the most ridiculous thing in the lawsuit.
The Mega Millions matrix only had 1-56 until October 2013 and was changed to 1-75 towards the end of October 2013. So how could he have played the numbers 66 &70 for 30 years when they didn't even exist until 11 years ago?
I'd dismiss the lawsuit and laugh in his face on that alone.
Were they 1 yrs old when picked the numbers?
Ohhh That is a super good point about the numbers.
And the guy waited a year to see if the real other winner came forward, all the while claiming he misplaced the ticket. I hope nothing happened to the other winner.
Why didn't he bring up the "lost" ticket when he first made the claim?
I think if someone else actually filed a claim he'd have just moved on with his life. Since it became clear that no one else is coming forward he must've figured he could steal this too thinking it'd be easy to convince with the same numbers as his.
He still looking for it
will be funny if other torched qp n purchased hrs later
but he needs to know it he duplicated the tkt by mistake
Well he cld hv played them for 30 yrs in Bingo
people are so greedy
It still does not make it his ticket if the numbers duplicated for someone else. One cannot solely own a particular set of numbers. If I play a set of favorite numbers and they repeat later in a qp for someone else, I have no claim there.
The lottery could end this thing quickly if the other ticket WAS a qp, just by telling him that. Since that is not happening, then the other ticket is most likely a 100% the other one he can't find bought with his play card. It will have to be determined in court what happens now.
He has the burden of proof. I would not give him any info on the other ticket and there likely has already been informal discussions with him on this matter. If they tell him it was a qp, then he will claim there was a computer error and his 2nd ticket was oddly printed out as a qp. You should always let your opponent back himself into a corner.
"Plaintiff has suffered financial hardship and emotional distress, including but not limited to, embarrassment, anxiety and mental anguish, all to his general damage in a sum in excess of $50,000.00," the lawsuit states.
Get a f****n grip, man.
someone bet him $200 million that he would lose his other ticket and now he has to pay up.
You only get to win once, buddy....greedy!
If he bought both tickets at the SAME time. Then he has a case. Ticket number should tell when it was purchased and where. Plus time ticket was printed will show up on tickets also. I'm not sure if barcode reveals time printed. If everything points toward that chevron gas station and it's narrowed down to a 5 minute window. All logical reasoning points to him being the full winner of the jackpot. They could bring in a math specialist and he could explain the astronomical odds it would be for the same identical numbers to be printed from the same lottery machine at the same location within a 10 second window. Plus they could look to see how close the two tracking numbers are on the tickets. Now getting the information about the second ticket is something the attorney will have to fight for. All the tracking numbers, etc. Because if that ticket was printed, all those numbers exist in their database. Now if he's just trying to get the other half because no one claimed it. Then he won't get it.
* When Lahijani showed up in June to pick up half the jackpot, he could have told the lottery officials that he was the winner of the entire jackpot, but at present, could not locate the 2nd ticket.
Instead, according to the report, he did not want to talk to the press, nor were lottery officials made aware of his decision to be paid out in a lump sum or not. The guy was private, and that's his choice. Fast forward to December & suddenly he's accusing the lottery of being dishonest, lacking integrity & being treated unfairly because the lottery " should know" he is entitled to the entire jackpot. Why did he wait 6 months before filing a lawsuit?
There's a reason Indiana Jones tossed the SS officer out of the Zeppelin onto luggage below- " No ticket!"
It does not matter about any video footage the store may or may not have. The guy does NOT have the second ticket so, HE should not get the other half of the lottery prize. The ticket is always proof of purchase.
A math specialist would not be useful. As the lottery stated in other news stories, the ticket could have been purchased by two friends trying to play the same numbers. And why would the winner purchase the same exact ticket a fraction of a second or seconds later? It makes zero sense.
Perhaps a second ticket printed out in error and someone later bought it.
If he was shown on video buying both tickets he should get dem fat stacks.
He must not be good with money.
He does have the funds to pay for the lawsuit and the aspect of being the sole winner that presented a winning ticket could get interesting. We do have to remember, it is CA and they create some unique laws with their thought process out there. Might have to break out the popcorn for this one.
A jury might have a different opinion. They will probably be on his side before the trial starts. Little guy getting stiffed by the greedy lottery commission in California. Now if the facts come out that it's just a money grab. And there is no proof whatsoever that the second ticket was purchased at the same gas station. Then he has no chance.
Someone who just made out with almost $200M is a lil guy no more. A typical jury would see him as being greedy just like any other multimillionaire.
The case will never get that far and is unlikely to survive a motion to dismiss. As others have pointed out, the ticket is a bearer instrument and the plaintiff has been unusually vague with details to support his claim.
I agree.
i hope it goes to trial so they can put him on the stand and ask him why he treats lottery tickets like a squirrel treats acorns. i can't get my head around all these lost lottery ticket stories.
If the second ticket was purchased at the same gas station. Who do you think bought the ticket? The lottery commission can squash this quickly by stating it was bought somewhere else. Now if that's not the case. Then the door is now left open. A good attorney could have a field day with this case. Especially if the ticket was bought within seconds of the 1st winning ticket. It's all in the database. He was a lil guy. Jury would still side with him if ticket was purchased at same gas station. No doubt about it.
Well, You KNOOW Ole Stat$ iz
watchin DIZ..!! Maybe I can pickup some pointerz on dem LOz weak spotz...you know, like , a Prize Fighter studyin their opponent for da uPcOmIn 
fight..
Cauze, I think LOz are like the Big-Headed Alienz on the Star Trek episode, wheaa Captain Pike said az he grabbed'im and pointed his Phazer at hiz Head..
"I think I've just blasted a Hole in that window, and you're preventing Me from seeing it..noow would you like me to test my Theory out on your Head"?..
Dat Hole instantly appeared ..
-Stat$talker
P.U. something stinks to high heaven with regards to this missing California mega millions ticket.
Now off to prepare my liverwurst sandwich .....
First, I don't think he bought the ticket. His whole story about playing the same numbers for 30 years is utter BS. If I bought both I wouldn't try so hard to convince ppl with that instead of sticking to specific facts.
Second, even if he did buy the second he shouldn't have any claim over the other half till he presents his other ticket. It's the buyer's responsibility to keep the ticket safe and lottery has no obligation to entertain his stupidity or recklessness.
He's not the lil guy anymore. He just won a multimillion dollar prize and average Americans would see that as he should count his blessings and move on. From what I can gather he definitely didn't purchase the second and is just trying out his luck in court since no one else came forward with a claim. I wouldn't have waited till the last day to file a suit if I bought both. Wouldn't have made a BS story about playing the same numbers for 30 years when lottery matrix only included 1-56 till 2013 which means 66 & 70 didn't exist. He would've known that if his claim was genuine.
He's just another greedy multimillionaire.
What if there never was a second ticket and it was a made up, announced, second ticket by someone in the office of the California lottery? Does anybody know exactly what happens to the money that does not get claimed?
Does the state where a large jackpot does not get claimed get all the money or does it get distributed to all the states according to the number of tickets sold for the drawings since it was last hit?
I assume the states already got their share of the tickets sold, before the drawing was held. I assume also that the Multi state association sends the money to the state for Jackpot winnings to be distributed to the winner(s). Do they do that before the winner is verified or after? Who gets to keep the unclaimed jackpots?
In this case the two tickets were from the same state and one didn't get claimed. Do the people who bought losing tickets have something to say about how half of the jackpot is handled?