Methuen store on lucky streak when it comes to selling winning lottery tickets
METHUEN -- A Methuen convenience store is on a lucky streak that customers are hoping to cash in on.
"We're the number one lottery agent in the state," said Tony Amico, owner of Ted's Stateline Mobile in Methuen. "I don't take that for granted."
"They're big winners. They sell a lot of winners here," said Thomas Perry of Methuen.
"It's a winner. They win a lot in this store. Very good," said Joan Desell of Salem, New Hampshire.
The store is gearing up for Tuesday night's Mega Millions drawing.
"If you look out at our parking lot it's full. I have three people working now, I have a fourth coming in to work tonight," said Amico.
Some customers are strategizing. "I kind of look at past numbers," said Ronny Haddad of Salem, N.H.. "I look at which ones have come up more often than others. I kind of go with that."
Others are planning what they would do with the estimated $830 million prize, which if hit, would be the third largest jackpot in the history of the game. It would also make it the fourth largest jackpot in U.S. lottery history.
"I'd go to Scotland and I'd buy a house," said Deb Swenson of Lowell.
Since May, Ted's Stateline Mobil has sold three tickets that won prizes of a million dollars, one of those being a Mega Millions winning ticket sold in June.
"It's been pretty lucky the last few weeks," said Amico. "Our sales have tripled and quadrupled and gone up like 10 times over the past few weeks, just on Mega Millions."
"Chances are yes they sell more tickets, they're going to have more winners but a lot of people are superstitious and just think Ted's Mobile is very lucky so people will drive near and far just to get to that store," said Mark William Bracken, Massachusetts State Lottery Interim Executive Director.
Mega Millions drawings are held every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. The jackpot was last hit on April 15th.