It took four phone calls from the Michigan Lottery before a Rochester Hills man answered and learned he’d won $1 million playing Mega Millions online.

Anthony Frabotta, 66, matched the five white balls drawn – 08-42-54-63-67 – in the Jan. 24 Mega Millions drawing to win a $1 million prize. He bought his ticket online at MichiganLottery.com.

“I missed a few calls from a Lansing-area phone number the day after I won. I usually don’t answer if I don’t recognize the number, but I thought somebody might need bail money so I answered,” Frabotta joked.

On the other end of the phone was a supervisor from the Lottery’s customer service center to confirm Frabotta had won a big prize.

“At first I thought I had goofed something up or done something wrong,” said Frabotta. “When the supervisor, Joe, said I won $1 million it got my attention. I looked at the speakerphone in my office and said: ‘Say that again please!’

“While I was listening to Joe, I opened my account and saw I had a $1 million pending prize. That’s when it hit me that I had really won.”

Frabotta visited Lottery headquarters Friday to claim the big prize. With his winnings, he plans to support children’s charities in Metro Detroit and retire a couple of years early.

Mega Millions drawings take place each Tuesday and Friday evening. Each Mega Millions play is only $1. For an additional $1 per play, players have the opportunity to add a “Megaplier” that can multiply non-jackpot prizes by up to five times. Mega Millions tickets are sold in 44 states, Washington D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Tickets for Mega Millions drawings may be purchased at the Lottery’s 11,000 retailers around the state and online at MichiganLottery.com until 10:45 p.m. the day of the drawing.