The lucky Florida resident who won $1.58 billion in the Mega Millions jackpot has yet to come forward, officials said Wednesday.
The staggering sum was won with a ticket sold at a Publix store in Neptune Beach, Florida.
James F. Davis, Secretary of the Florida Lottery, said Wednesday that officials did not yet know who bought the winning ticket.
The mega prize, the third largest in US history, must be picked up in person at Florida Lottery headquarters in Tallahassee within 180 days of the drawing.
The winner can claim the money in a lump sum or in annual installments.
The Publix grocery store in Neptune Beach, Fla. that sold the winning ticket will also receive a $100,000 “bonus commission.”
The lucky Florida resident who won $1.58 billion in the Mega Millions jackpot has yet to come forward
Lottery winners do not have the option to remain anonymous in Florida, but are given 90 days before being publicly announced.
The massive win broke the end of a four-month winning drought at the Florida Lottery, which has seen the jackpot continue to grow.
There have been 31 consecutive draws since the game’s jackpot was last won on April 18th.
Tuesday’s magic numbers finishing the stretch were 13-19-20-32-33 and the Mega Ball: 14.
The prize money is subject to federal tax. Many states also tax lottery winnings. Mega Millions is played in 45 states, Washington, DC and the US Virgin Islands.
The Publix supermarket that sold the winning ticket will also receive a $100,000 “bonus commission”.
A local woman who shops at Publix told News 4 Jax, “I hope it’s someone I know, I’m just kidding, but I hope it’s someone from the local community because that’s awesome.”
“There are so many people out here who deserve it.”
A local woman who shops at Publix told News 4 Jax, “I hope it’s someone I know.”
The mega prize, the third largest in US history, must be picked up in person at Florida Lottery headquarters in Tallahassee within 180 days of the drawing
Another buyer told the Atlanta Journal Constitution, “It’s amazing that the Mega Millions jackpot is this big and that it’s this close is just (crazy).”
A local flatmate told the publication, “I’m happy for her but I just wish I was, I can’t help but be a little green with envy.”
Neptune Beach has a population of just over 7,000 and is located about 15 miles east of Jacksonville on Florida’s Atlantic Coast.
Davis told the Associated Press, “These people may go to a lawyer or a financial advisor and make sure they’re doing everything right.”
“Because as you know, as a winner you have the opportunity to make such a difference in the lives of so many people.”
David described the moment he found out there had been a Mega Millions winner in Florida while attending a Multi-State Lottery Association meeting in Iowa: “I actually walked into the meeting room and everyone started clapping, which was lovely. Exciting and exhilarating at the same time.”
“I’m just telling you that the last two Powerball winners have been in California and I have my fingers crossed that the next winner will be here in Florida state,” he said.
The latest winner has won the biggest prize in Mega Million history, just surpassing the previous all-time high of $1.537 billion sold in South Carolina in 2018.
Winning may be exciting, but Mega Millions players only have a 1 in 302,575,350 chance of winning the jackpot each draw.
“Congratulations to our latest jackpot winner, as well as the more than 43.7 million winners of all prize tiers during this jackpot round,” Gretchen Corbin, executive director of the Mega Millions Consortium, said in a statement Wednesday.
“We also celebrate the donations raised for the many worthy causes supported by our participating lotteries.”