Merle and Patricia Butler Mega Millions Winners: Last Golden Ticket Revealed
The final Mega Millions mystery winner was solved today after a couple from Illinois came forward to claim a piece of the record $656 million jackpot.
Merle and Patricia Butler are two newly declared millionaires. The married couple, who will take home $218,666,667, came forward Wednesday to share their winning story.
The Red Bud residents stated that they had won their share of the jackpot after purchasing a $3 quick pick. The 65-year old man noted that the first winning number he noticed was the mega ball.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"I thought, 'I might win something," Merle Butler said ticking off the number from the list of winning numbers. "The further I went, the more they matched. After I looked at it for a couple minutes, I turned to my wife and said, 'We won.'"
And what did Merle's wife Patricia have to say? Not much.
"She kind of looked at me funny and I said, 'No, we won.' And then she started giggling," Merle Butler said with a laugh. "She giggled for about four hours."
Merle then relayed that they spent the late hours of the night trying to decide how many people they would be sharing the record jackpot with.
Careful to take necessary precaution, Merle also admitted that securing their new millions had turned into a new fulltime job for the previously retired 65-year-old.
The couple's first trip was to the bank the next morning, where they put the winning ticket in a secure lock box. Merle said the teller didn't really believe him when he said that he had won nor did many others.
"People kept asking me if I won and I kept laughing it off and saying, 'Yeah, sure. I won it," Merle said. "I've answered most of them truthfully that yes I did, but they didn't catch it."
