A Los Angeles lottery winner is suing the California Lottery for an additional $197.5 million, claiming he purchased two identical winning tickets for the December 8, 2023 Mega Millions drawing but lost one of them.

Faramarz Lahijani collected half of the $394 million jackpot in June 2024 but maintains he should receive the full amount. According to lottery officials, both winning tickets were sold at the same Chevron gas station on Ventura Boulevard in Encino through separate transactions - an unprecedented occurrence.

In a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court just days before the ticket's December 8, 2024 expiration date, Lahijani argues that:

• He is the sole winner of both tickets
• The lottery has sufficient information to verify his claim
• The purchase created a contractual relationship that the lottery is violating

The California Lottery has declined to comment on the ongoing litigation. Meanwhile, the Chevron gas station received a record $1.9 million bonus (0.5% of the prize value) for selling both winning tickets, regardless of the lawsuit's outcome.

The unusual case raises questions about why someone would purchase duplicate tickets with identical numbers, as a single ticket would have achieved the same result. The lost ticket's whereabouts remain unknown, and its validity expired on December 8, 2024.

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