The third-largest Mega Millions jackpot in American history, which was $1.6 billion in August, has been claimed, according to officials on Wednesday.
Five jackpots totaling more than $1 billion have been awarded in Mega Millions games. According to a recent Florida rule, the winner’s identity is kept secret for 90 days following the date the award was accepted, which was September 25, according to lottery officials’ emails.
The lottery did not indicate the expected lump sum amount or confirm whether the winner accepted the lump sum or the annuity.
The lump payment must be claimed by winners in Florida within 60 days of the drawing. If they decide to opt for an annuity, which is paid out in 30 annual installments, they have up to 180 days to do so.
Federal taxes are also levied on the windfall. In Florida, there is no state income tax. The winning ticket was purchased at a Publix in Neptune Beach, an Atlantic Coast community close to Jacksonville.
The Mega Ball was 14, and the winning numbers for August 8 were 13, 19, 20, 32, and 33.
The biggest jackpot ever was won by a Californian Powerball ticket from the drawing on November 8, 2022, which was worth a staggering $2.04 billion.
The second biggest was a $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot on January 13, 2016. Three winning tickets purchased in California, Florida, and Tennessee shared that jackpot.
Three more Mega Millions jackpots were the fourth, fifth, and sixth greatest jackpots, trailing the most recent Florida jackpot in third place. On October 23, 2018, a single person in South Carolina earned $1.537 billion, while on January 13, 2023, a single person in Maine got $1.35 billion, and on July 29, 2022, a single person in Illinois won $1.337 billion.
In February, the winner from Maine claimed their award and opted to remain anonymous. According to representatives of the Maine State Lottery, the winner used a limited liability business called LaKoma Island Investments LLC to cash in on the cash option.
According to the Multi-State Lottery Association, historically, the majority of grand prize winners have chosen to accept the award as a single, lump-sum payment.
The jackpot winner from Virginia from the March 4, 2023 drawing is one example of a winner who occasionally chooses the annuity.
According to Virginia law, the winner, whose identity is kept a secret, selected a $156.7 million annual annuity.
Prior to that, a Powerball winner had last chosen an annuity in 2014. Along with Washington, D.C., and the United States, Mega Millions is played in 45 states. Caribbean islands.
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