A California man is suing the state lottery for refusing to pay his $5m jackpot because his 16-year-old son bought the ticket.

This week, Long Beach resident Ward Thomas sued the California State Lottery Commission for denying him a $5m jackpot he won from a $20 Scratchers ticket last year. Thomas is also suing the owners of the gas station where the winning ticket was purchased.

According to the lawsuit, Thomas went to the Los Altos Mobil station last October with his 16-year-old son Benjamin. Thomas asked his son to go inside and redeem a dozen winning scratch tickets worth a total of $330. Thomas also asked his son to pick up some more Scratchers with the winnings.

Benjamin did as he was told, buying five new Scratchers and taking the balance of the original winnings in cash, while his father waited outside. When Thomas and his son got home, they scratched the tickets and discovered one was a $5m winner.