CHICAGO – The Mega Millions Jackpot for tomorrow night’s drawing has soared to $800 million - the seventh largest Mega Millions jackpot in history. However, someone in Illinois is already celebrating after snagging a cool $1 million over the weekend.
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The winning Mega Millions ticket was purchased at Gas Express in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood, located at 501 W. 31st Street. The lucky winner matched all five numbers, 6-23-42-59-63, to win the $1 million prize in Friday night’s drawing.
“I guess you can say ‘luck is in the air’ at Gas Express in Bridgeport," said Faris Saleh, owner of Gas Express. “This is the second big winning lottery ticket we’ve sold at our store this year - a $400,000 Lucky Day Lotto ticket in April and now a $1 million Mega Millions ticket – so exciting!”
For selling the winning ticket, the retailer will receive a bonus of $10,000 which is one percent of the prize amount.
“My employees and I are hoping that the winner is someone we know, a regular customer,” added Saleh. “No matter the outcome, I plan to use some of the bonus to celebrate with my employees and use the rest to upgrade my gas station.”
This is now the seventh Illinois Lottery player who has won a prize of $1 million or more playing Mega Millions this year.
In total, nearly 66,000 winning Mega Millions tickets were sold in Illinois for the September 6 drawing.
Winners have one year from the date of the winning draw to come forward and claim their prize. The Illinois Lottery encourages all lucky winners to write their name on the back of their ticket and keep it in a safe place until they’re ready to come forward and claim.
Mega Millions is played every Tuesday and Friday night. Tickets are $2 each, and players can add the Megaplier for an additional $1 for the chance to multiply non-jackpot prizes.
And please remember - Mega Millions is a game of chance. Knowing the rules and odds of the games you play is an important part of responsible gaming. To learn more, visit the responsible gaming pages on the Illinois Lottery website: Illinois Lottery Responsible Gaming.
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