(WXYZ) — A mistake led to a Dearborn Heights man winning two $1 million Mega Millions prizes.
Samir Mazahem, 56, matched the five white balls drawn – 01-05-09-10-23 – in the June 9 drawing to win a $1 million prize. He accidentally bought two tickets, each worth $1 million.
“I went online and bought a ticket using numbers that are family birthdays,” said Mazahem. “I forgot to save the numbers as favorites in the app, so I went back in and set them up as favorites so I could easily play them in the future.
“What I didn’t realize, is that meant I would be buying a second ticket with the same numbers. Once I figured out I had bought two tickets with identical numbers, I was a little bummed but didn’t think much about it."
“I recently logged into the app to check on some tickets I had bought, and that is when I saw I had two $1 million prizes pending. Saying that I was stunned is an understatement. I couldn’t believe it was real. It took several days for the reality to set in that my mistake had paid off to the tune of $2 million!”
The player visited Lottery headquarters to claim his prize. With his winnings, he plans to buy a home and then save the remainder.
“Winning is exciting and gives me some comfort knowing that when I retire, I will have money in the bank,” Mazahem said.
