Durham twin brothers win $200,000 in scratch-off lottery game

The twin brothers, 18, won playing the “All About the Bens” game. They recently finished their first year at the University of North Carolina and picked up a $5 lottery ticket at the Academy Quick Stop on Academy Road in Durham.

They said they realized they had won when they scratched off the ticket at home.

“We weren’t really thinking about it,” said Ibrahim Mubarek. “We’ve bought maybe a handful of tickets since we turned eighteen. We were driving and saw the store and just decided to buy a ticket together.

“I had to keep looking at the ticket. I didn’t believe people really won.”

The brothers claimed their prize Monday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After taxes, the brothers took home $141,501.

“This is just so amazing,” said Saher Mubarek. “We might travel. We want to plan a trip to Turkey or Greece.”

All About The Bens launched this month with four top prizes of $200,000. The Mubarek brothers won the first top prize. Three more top prizes remain to be claimed.