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Eleven Co-Workers Claim $543 Million Mega Millions Jackpot

“If I could win, anybody could win. We’re just normal people!”

Eleven co-workers claimed the $534 million Mega Millions jackpot last week, according to the California Lottery. NBC San Diego reports that the co-workers each pitched in $2 to buy tickets as part of a pool—and one of them ended up winning the largest jackpot in California history. “It was spur of the moment. ‘Hey, did you hear about the jackpot? We should play,’” one of the winners, Roland Reyes, said. “If I could win, anybody could win,” he added in a press release. “We’re just normal people!” The winners, who are between the ages of 21 and 60 years old, work in the financial sector but did not disclose their place of employment. While the group didn’t spend a lot of time on the decision, Reyes said he thought “they had a better chance of winning if they bought the ticket from a small shop.” The winning ticket was sold at Ernie’s Liquors in San Jose, and the owner will get $1 million for selling the ticket. He says that his winnings will go to charity and his fellow employees. “United States is a country where you can realize your dreams really well. This country has given us the opportunity to do that,” owner Kewal Sachdev said.