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NEWS ABOUT: Mega Millions lottery

Illinois Mega Millions Winners Unmasked

Retiree Merle Butler says he stuffed ticket in safe-deposit box

(Newser) - Nosy people of the world, rejoice! Illinois, unlike Maryland and Kansas , doesn't let its lotto winners remain anonymous, which means you can now know the face of a couple who are a whole lot richer, after stepping forward today to claim the third winning Mega Millions ticket. "It'... More »

Final Mega Millions Winner to Reveal Self Tomorrow

Illinois resident can't stay anonymous

(Newser) - The final winner of the record $656 million Mega Millions jackpot has come forward, and unlike in other states, the Illinois winner won't be able to stay anonymous. The winner's identity will be revealed tomorrow at a press conference in Red Bud, the small southern Illinois town where... More »

3 Maryland Friends to Split Mega Millions Riches

Each goes home with $34.997M after paying Uncle Sam

(Newser) - Mirlande Wilson apparently lost something other than her "winning" ticket (her mind?), because Maryland's Mega Millions prize has officially been claimed, and the riches go to three friends who work together in the state's public school system—where they say they'll continue to work. They'll... More »

Mega Millions 'Winner': I Lost Ticket

But Mirlande Wilson doesn't seem too concerned about finding it

(Newser) - You knew this was coming: Mirlande Wilson , who first claimed she won the Mega Millions lottery separately from her pool of co-workers, then said she hid the winning ticket at the McDonald's where they all work, now says she's lost the ticket. "I have no idea where... More »

Mega Millions 'Winner' Has Press Conference...

At which she tells press to 'go home'

(Newser) - Just when you thought the story of Mirlande Wilson , the Baltimore woman who may or may not have a winning Mega Millions ticket, couldn't get any more bizarre … she goes and holds a press conference to which she shows up late, spends most of the time toying with... More »

Mega Millions 'Winner': I Hid Ticket ... at McDonald's

Mirlande Wilson still insists she bought ticket on her own

(Newser) - The weird story of Maryland's supposed Mega Millions winner gets weirder: Now Mirlande Wilson, the McDonald's employee who said she wouldn't share the winnings with her lottery pool because she bought the ticket separately from her co-workers, claims to have hidden the winning ticket—logically, at the... More »

Mega Millions 'Winners' Just Dreaming: Officials

None of the 3 winners have contacted lottery officials

(Newser) - Despite the rumors flying in Maryland, Kansas, and Illinois, none of the three Mega Millions winners have come forward to officials, and people claiming to have won are probably just fantasists, say lottery administrators. The winners who will share the $656 million prize might not contact the lottery for days... More »

Maryland Woman: I Won Mega Millions

...and says $105M ticket wasn't part of co-workers' lotto pool

(Newser) - Not even three days have passed since the Mega Millions drawing , and already one supposed winner is embroiled in controversy: Mirlande Wilson claims she has a winning ticket, but won't split her $105 million share of the jackpot with the co-workers in her lottery pool. Wilson, 37, claims she... More »

Mega Millions Ticket Buyer Struck by Lightning

What are the odds?

(Newser) - A Kansas man who quipped to a pal that he was more likely to be struck by lightning than to buy a winning Mega Millions lottery ticket turned out to be exactly right. Unlucky Bill Isles, 48, was struck by a bolt of lightning in the backyard of his Wichita... More »

3 Winning Mega Millions Tickets Sold

Winners are in Maryland, Illinois, and Kansas

(Newser) - At least three lucky (and still anonymous) souls have winning tickets in the $640 million Mega Millions jackpot, reports AP . The winners were sold in Illinois (in Red Bud, near St. Louis); Maryland (in the Baltimore suburb of Milford Mill, reports the Baltimore Sun ); and somewhere in Kansas. California... More »

Mega Millions Up to $640M

... and counting

(Newser) - Mega Millions is up to $640 million, and there's still about six hours to go before the numbers are drawn. Officials figure Americans will have plunked down nearly $1.5 billion by tonight's 11pm drawing, reports AP . "This is unprecedented," says a lottery spokeswoman. Exhibit A... More »

Mega Millions: What to Do If You Actually Win

Wait just a minute before you call everyone you know

(Newser) - You're probably not going to hit the jackpot in tonight's $540 million Mega Millions drawing—but what if you do? First of all, if you bought a bunch of tickets with a pool of co-workers or friends, you might want to take a moment to write up... More »

No, You're Not Going to Win Mega Millions $500M Jackpot

You have a strategy? It won't improve your odds: mathematicians

(Newser) - Have some complicated algorithm you think will help you win the Mega Millions record $500 million jackpot? Sorry, but there's really nothing you can do to improve your odds … which are about one in 176 million, ABC News reports. Since the pool of numbers never changes (the first... More »

Lottery Winner Ordered to Share With Co-Workers

NJ man tried to keep all of betting pool's $38.5M win

(Newser) - A New Jersey construction worker who refused to share a $38.5 million lottery jackpot with five colleagues who chipped in for tickets has been ordered to cough up the cash. After winning the Mega Millions jackpot, Americo Lopes quit his job, claiming he needed foot surgery. His co-workers, who... More »

Marriott President's Son Wins $107M Lottery

Brian McCarthy is now a lot richer

(Newser) - In tough times, it's probably no surprise that sales of lottery tickets are booming across the country, as noted by USA Today . But a recent Mega Millions winner wasn't so down-on-his-luck to begin with: Virginia's Brian McCarthy, the son of Marriott hotels president Robert J. McCarthy, took... More »

Forget the Mini-Mart: Now You Can Buy Lotto Tix Online

Why go to all the trouble of buying a physical ticket?

(Newser) - Poker sites may be strictly verboten , but another kind of online gambling is starting to crop up: state lotteries. Minnesota has already begun selling lottery tickets online, even offering year-long subscriptions for its Powerball and Mega Millions games, USA Today reports. Several other states are considering following suit. A bill... More »

Pushy Customer Misses $319M Lottery Jackpot

He cuts in line, and next person gets winning Quick Pick

(Newser) - How’s this for karma: A man in Albany pushed ahead in line for a Mega Millions lottery ticket—and the guy he shoved aside got the winning Quick Pick. The man “actually cut in front of me to buy a ticket,” said Mike Barth. “I thought... More »

Meet the Unluckiest Guy in America

You skip one office lottery pool...

(Newser) - Here's a tip: If you're going to join your office's lottery pool, best to be consistent. One man in New York decided to take a pass last week because he wasn't feeling lucky ... and that was the week seven of his co-workers won the $319 million Mega Millions jackpot. "... More »

Lotto Winner Vanishes, Hubby Sues for Cash

$190-million dream is turning into a nightmare for Holly Lahti

(Newser) - A single mother from Idaho has gone missing, just days after winning a $190 million lottery. And now, the man who assaulted her in 2003—her husband—is suing for a share of the cash, reports the New York Daily News . Holly Lahti won the Jan. 4 Mega Millions jackpot,... More »

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