Sterling Heights Man Wins $100,000 Lottery Prize Days Before Birthday

A man is already having one of his best birthdays ever and it's still a few days away. It's all thanks to a lottery ticket that turned from a loser to a major winner. 45-year-old Safa Behnam of Sterling Heights, Michigan, won $100,000 after he was selected in a random drawing on Nov. 30.

Behnam entered the competition by scanning his non-winning 500X Money Maker scratch-off tickets on the Michigan Lottery app.

“I have been playing the 500X Money Maker game a lot, hoping to win one of the big $6 million prizes, and then scanning the non-winners for a second chance,” said Behnam.

“I saw an email from the Lottery saying I’d won a $100,000 prize, but I thought it was a scam. I called the Lottery office to confirm it was just a scam email, so when they told me it was real, I was shocked.

My birthday is in a few days, so winning is a pretty great early birthday gift!”

According to the Michigan Lottery, those who enter into the 500X Money Maker Second Chance promotion have a chance at winning anywhere from $500 to $100,000.

Behnam said he already knows exactly what he wants to do with the money, he wants to take his family on a vacation to Mexico and then save the rest.

“Winning means less stress and more vacations and relaxing for me and my family,” said Behnam in a news release.