A Tennessee store clerk has been arrested on theft charges after he stole his father’s winning lottery ticket and tried to claim the $1 million prize himself, authorities allege.

According to the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office, Patel, 23, was charged with theft over $250,000.

The real winner purchased two winning Diamond and Gold scratch-off tickets for $20 each at a Shell gas station in Murfreesboro, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

The customer scratched off the barcodes on the front and asked Patel to check if they had any winning tickets.

The customer didn’t know how much the tickets were worth, so Patel gave him a smaller prize and threw the winning tickets in the trash.

He told the man that one of the tickets had won $40. He pretended that the other ticket was a loser, when in fact it was a million-dollar winner.

Surveillance footage from a store shows Patel taking the winning ticket out of the trash and putting it in his pocket.

He is then seen on video celebrating in the store.

After Patel went to pick up the prize, lottery officials became suspicious and began an investigation, including reviewing video footage from the store.

Patel is being held on $100,000 bail.

The rightful owner was unaware he had won the lottery until contacted by Detective Lieutenant Steve Craig of the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office.

“That’s money that completely changes your life,” Craig told NewsChannel 5.

The father, who wished to remain anonymous, had to be convinced that the victory was real.

“He was very grateful,” Craig said.

Patel is being held in the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center on $100,000 bail.