CHICAGO – The Mega Millions draw on Tuesday, June 8 made one Illinoisian $56 million richer after winning the largest lottery game prize in-state since 2017. The winning ticket was purchased at Citgo Gas Station, located at 13830 S. Pulaski Road, in Crestwood, Illinois.
The winner has yet to come forward but according to the store employees where the ticket was purchased, the player is aware of their newfound fortune.
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"I was alerted by one of my employees that a gentleman, who frequently shops at our store, inserted his Mega Millions ticket into the machine and found out that he was the winner of the jackpot,” said Cue, owner of the Citgo gas station where the winning ticket was sold. “What the customer does next is simply priceless.”
“The gentleman basically falls to the floor, sits there for a few minutes and then gets up. He then starts sprinting towards the front door screaming, ‘I won, I won the Mega Millions!’ That happened on June 15 and we haven't seen him since.” added Cue.
“I'm sure he is in total shock and disbelief-- just like I was when a customer told me that we sold the winning ticket,” said Cue. “Since that day, there's been non-stop action at our store but after things settle down, we plan to reinvest all of the selling bonus back into the business.”
The Illinois Lottery is looking forward to celebrating this big win with the player and would like to remind the winner that they have 12 months from the date of the draw to claim their prize.
The Illinois Lottery also encourages the winner to write their name on the back of the ticket and make an appointment at a claim center to redeem their prize. More information on claiming a lottery prize can be found by visiting the Illinois Lottery website on the Illinois Lottery When You Win page.
The Mega Millions jackpot on offer is now $50 million. Mega Millions is played every Tuesday and Friday night, and the next draw is on Friday, June 25 at 10 p.m. (CT).
About the Illinois Lottery:
Founded in 1974, the Illinois Lottery has contributed over $21 billion (since 1985) to the state’s Common School Fund to assist K-12 public schools, as well as hundreds of millions of dollars to the Capital Projects Fund and to special causes like Illinois Veterans services, the fight against breast cancer, MS research, Special Olympics, Alzheimers, police memorials and assistance for people living with HIV/AIDS. In addition to playing in-store, the Illinois Lottery offers online and mobile play for all draw-based Illinois Lottery games at illinoislottery.com. Players must be at least 18 years old.
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