USA: $1.08 Billion Powerball Jackpot Winner Yet to Claim Prize
In one of the largest jackpots in Powerball history, a winning ticket worth $1.08 billion was sold at a convenience store in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.
However, the owner or owners of the ticket have yet to come forward and claim their prize.
The winning numbers for the jackpot were 7, 13, 10, 24, 11, with the Powerball being 24.
The lucky ticket holder has two options for claiming the prize: a $1.08 billion annuitized payment over 29 years or a lump-sum payment of $558.1 million, both before taxes.
Wednesday’s prize ranks as the sixth-largest US lottery jackpot and the third-largest Powerball jackpot in history.
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The world record for the largest Powerball jackpot was a staggering $2.04 billion, won last year in California, and the second-largest was the $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot won in 2016.
The winning ticket was sold at Las Palmitas Mini Market in downtown Los Angeles. The store will receive nearly $1 million as a bonus for selling the winning ticket.
Angelica Menjivar, whose mother owns the store, expressed happiness for the bonus and said they haven’t yet decided how to spend it.
Nabor Herrera, an employee at the store, learned about the winning ticket as he arrived for work on Thursday, and reporters immediately surrounded him.
Herrera hopes the winner is one of the store’s regular customers, as three of his customers bought a large share of tickets. He eagerly checked his own tickets in the hopes of winning something.
In California, Powerball jackpot winners have one year to claim their prizes and 60 days after validation to choose their preferred payout option.
Though there was a single jackpot winner, players are encouraged to check their tickets for the chance of winning one of the seven other prizes ranging from $4 to $2 million, depending on state lottery rules.
The state’s public school system is also a winner in this drawing, as the lottery has raised nearly $80 million for public schools just from this game, according to Carolyn Becker, a California Lottery spokesperson.
The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are extremely slim, with a 1 in 292.2 million chance of hitting the winning numbers.
Before Wednesday’s win, there had been 38 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner since April 19, 2023, when a ticket in Ohio won a grand prize of $252.6 million.
“Congratulations to the newest Powerball jackpot winner and the California Lottery,” said Drew Svitko, Powerball Product Group Chair and Pennsylvania Lottery Executive Director.
He also highlighted that Powerball has been raising billions of dollars for good causes supported by lotteries for over 30 years.
“For those who didn’t win the jackpot on Wednesday, there’s still hope with the upcoming Mega Millions drawing. The jackpot for Friday’s Mega Millions is estimated to be worth $720 million annuitized, with a cash value of $369.6 million.”