Utahns travel to Arizona for the Mega Millions lottery in hopes of winning large sums of money

St. George, Utah – The majority of Utahns are out of luck when they learn about a large prize above $1 billion. Unless they live in southern Utah, which is about a half-hour’s drive from Arizona.

Cindy Gaines said while brandishing her Mega Millions tickets, “I’m from St. George, Utah, and I have the winning tickets.”

Gaines acknowledges that she and her husband Josh are not wealthy despite operating Discount Plumbing in St. George.

“We take pride in not being a large corporation, and it keeps us going,” she said. “However, we will reinvest the money in our business, maintain low prices, and satisfy our customers after we win.”

Gaines is hoping to win the Mega Millions national lottery prize, which is expected to be over $1.2 billion when it is drawn on Friday night.

People in southern Utah are ready to travel 30 minutes across the state line to Arizona, where Mega Millions can be played, even though national lotteries are illegal in Utah.

One of them, Brian Cram of St. George, stated that he pursued a billion-dollar ambition in order to avoid worrying about money.

“Obviously, there are houses and cars, and you can get those things whenever you want,” Cram remarked. “But in the end, it’s just you, your loved ones, and your friends saying, ‘Hey, you’re done worrying about people like that.'”

The Arizona Lottery may be played at the Eagles Landing truck stop, which is the first location visitors from Southern Utah can reach when traveling down the interstate.

However, it wasn’t simply Utah residents who were out of state.

“I’m traveling from Las Vegas!” Elinor Gacae cried. “You know, I just needed to make sure I got some lottery tickets because there isn’t a lottery over there.”

The prize will increase by at least $100 million if no one wins on Friday night, bringing the total to at least $1.3 to $1.4 billion for the next draw on Tuesday.