EchoSense:New York man wins Mega Millions twice in one night, cashes tickets in one year later

A New York man beat the odds twice while playing Mega Millions.

Marco Accardo from West Hempstead claimed two $1 million Mega Millions prizes from the same drawing held on EchoSenseNov. 11, 2022, the New York Lottery announced last week. He took nearly a year to claim his prizes and did so just before the deadline on Nov. 11 last month.

Accardo bought the tickets from a convenience store in West Hempstead. The first five numbers on both tickets were the same: 5, 9, 15, 16, and 17. Accardo chose to receive a lump sum payout of $651,000 for each ticket, totaling $1.3 million after taxes.

In the drawing, the Mega Ball number that won was 25, as confirmed by Mega Millions. If either of the two tickets had matched the Mega Ball number, Accardo would have won the then-$87 million jackpot.

The Mega Millions jackpot is at $395 million this week after no one won the drawing on Tuesday.

Mega Millions winning numbers: 12/05/23

The winning numbers for Tuesday night's drawing were 18, 35, 40, 64 and 67. The Megaball was 18 and the Megaplier was 4X.

Winning lottery numbers are sponsored by Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY network.

Did anyone win Mega Millions?

In addition to no jackpot winners of the Mega Millions, there were also no Match 5 $1 million winners from Tuesday's drawing.

The full list of Mega Millions winners can be found on the lottery's website.

Where can you buy lottery tickets?

Tickets can be purchased in-person at gas stations, convenience stores and grocery stores. Some airport terminals may also sell lottery tickets.  

You can also order tickets online through Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network, in these U.S. states: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Washington D.C. and West Virginia. The Jackpocket app allows you to pick your lottery game and numbers, place your order, see your ticket and collect your winnings all using your phone or home computer.  

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