CNN –
And the winner is… anonymous.
The lucky player who won the $1.6 billion Mega Millions prize last month has come forward to claim the winnings, the Florida Lottery told CNN.
The winning numbers were announced on August 8th. The lot was purchased at a Publix supermarket in Neptune Beach.
The winner accepted the prize on Monday, a lottery spokesman said. Officials did not disclose whether the recipient received a lump sum of about $794.2 million or will receive the full jackpot in annual payments. The winner had until 60 days after the drawing to win the former.
According to the game’s website, the $1.6 billion payout is Mega Millions’ biggest prize. The previous record of $1.537 billion was achieved in South Carolina in 2018.
There’s good news and bad news for the winner: The lottery will deduct 24% of federal tax withholding, but Florida does not collect taxes on lottery winnings.
In accordance with state law, the lottery winner remains anonymous for 90 days after the day the prize is claimed, the Florida Lottery said.
For those who were unlucky in Neptune, there is even more money to be won.
Wednesday night’s Powerball jackpot is estimated to be $850 million.
The lottery’s top prize rose from $785 million when no winner matched all six numbers Monday night. According to Powerball, an $850 million jackpot would be the fourth largest in the game’s history.
The largest lottery jackpot ever was a $2.04 billion Powerball prize won in California last year.