While California Lottery officials are urging the winner of the $63 million jackpot to come forward, one man said he tried to do just that, but instead, officials took his winning ticket and destroyed it.

The winning ticket was purchased on Aug. 8, 2015, but state lottery officials say the SuperLotto winner hasn’t come forward yet. That’s a problem, because if they don’t claim the jackpot by 5 p.m. Feb. 4, that would be today, the prize will go to the state’s education fund instead of the ticketholder, reports the Los Angeles Times.

An L.A. County resident said in a lawsuit filed on Wednesday that he already tried to submit the winning ticket within the claim period, and in response, received a letter congratulating him, and telling him he’d receive his check soon.

Instead, the lottery office sent him a second letter in January informing him that a review of the ticket found it “too damaged to be reconstructed.” He claims officials refused to return the ticket in question, because, he thinks, they destroyed it. He wants a judge to declare him the rightful winner of that $63 million.

Lottery officials said they’re reviewing the matter, with a spokesman noting that the lottery usually sends congratulatory letters to all winners claiming a prize, but that doesn’t mean they’ve won. An investigation by former law enforcement and security officials has to first prove the ticket holder is the lawful winner before anything becomes official.

“The last-minute timing of this is suspicious,” said lottery spokesman Russ Lopez. “I am not saying it’s not real.”

Lottery ‘destroyed’ his winning $63-million Lotto jackpot, man claims [L.A. Times]

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