Kansas Mega Millions winner claims jackpot anonymously

Apr 6, 2012, 6:04 pm (217 comments)

Mega Millions

By Todd Northrop

TOPEKA, Kansas — The holder of one of three winning tickets in last week's record $656 million Mega Millions drawing came forward Friday to claim a share, Kansas Lottery officials announced Friday afternoon.

The winner — a single ticket holder — has chosen to remain anonymous, state lottery director Dennis Wilson said.

The announcement was made at an afternoon press conference at state lottery headquarters in Topeka.

Under Kansas law, lottery winners can choose not to publicly reveal their identities. The winner has retained legal counsel and financial advisers and "looks forward to retiring," Wilson said.

Kansas was one of three states where three tickets matched the winning numbers — 2, 4, 23, 38, and 46, with Mega Ball number 23 — amounting to an equal share of roughly $218.6 million, before taxes, under the annuity option. The Kansas lottery player purchased the winning ticket at a Casey's convenience store in Ottawa.

The winner has chosen to take a one-time lump-sum payment of about $157 million before taxes.

"It'll take a few days for us to transfer the money to their account. It was a single ticket holder — one person claimed the ticket," Wilson said.

"They were still just in awe that they had won it," Wilson said of the winner, who didn't know the ticket was a winner until Monday.

"They checked it over 10 times ... and still had a hard time believing it," Wilson said.

As for choosing to remain anonymous, Wilson said the winner obviously doesn't want the publicity.  "We all have to understand that these kind of winners need time to digest. They were still in awe that they had won it," Wilson said.

"They're like all of us. They think about the possibility of winning but they never think that it would hapen to them — but it did. It proves real people really win — and you could be next.

Two other winning tickets were purchased in Maryland and Illinois.

The Kansas winner is the first to officially come forward, just a week after the winning numbers were picked.

Meanwhile, Maryland lottery officials have been responding to a flurry of questions from the media this week after a Baltimore-area woman told the New York Post that she had one of the winning tickets. However, in a bizarre twist of the story, Mirlande Wilson, a 37-year-old single mother of seven who works at McDonald's, told the Post on Friday that she isn't sure where she last had the ticket.

"I'm still looking for it. I haven't even looked in my uniform pants yet," the Post quoted Wilson as saying. "I'm still looking everywhere to find it, in my purse, everywhere."

The state's lottery director said Thursday he hasn't seen the ticket, but he also says no one else has come forward saying he has it.

Carole Everett, a spokeswoman for the Maryland Lottery, said Tuesday she doesn't "put much stock in that story."

"She claims she won," Everett said. "She can't produce a ticket. ... In our opinion, until they walk in that door, hold that ticket, produce valid identification and our security people can process and validate it, it doesn't matter."

If Wilson is determined to be a winner, a showdown could be brewing with her McDonald's co-workers. They are demanding a share because they say they pooled their money to buy several tickets. Wilson has said the ticket she bought was separate from that.

Thanks to B$Rizzle and hearsetrax for the tip.

Sourced from CNN and MSNBC reports

Comments

Win$500Quick's avatarWin$500Quick

Smart move. It is too many crazy people out here ready to take advantage of you and turn your life upside down.

zinniagirl's avatarzinniagirl

Congratulations to the Kansas winner!   May they find peace and happiness knowing that they can retire comfortably now.

THRIFTY's avatarTHRIFTY

"It proves real people really win."

Are you kidding me? Aren't we all real people playing the lottery?

They should let all lottery players to claim anonymously.

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

ditto,

 

I dont expect to see these folks on LCML either,

i think ppl. are getting smarter about this stuff,

 

at the same time i not worried about running out of idiots to entertain us.

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Yes Thrifty it should, but once a state starts out w/ public disclosure, its going to be difficult to change that.

 

ps my ditto comment was at the 1st 2 posters.

CDanaT's avatarCDanaT

What a great story........... with a wealthy "anonymous" ending.......... Wouldn't it be nice to go down the street with a grin on your face everyday for many years to come knowing that you have a little 100 million dollar secret  ????

HiFi's avatarHiFi

anonymous is lame.  we should atleast see who won to proove that its real.  on a side note, if you live in a small town where the winning ticket was purchased and you lived there for many years an suddenly your house is up for sale, the townspeople will know who the winner was.

PlayTwoWin

If you want to retire with millions and have a quiet life.. Earn it. If you win out of pure luk it should be known publicly. If you can't handle the attention maybe don't play. Stick to your local smaller jackpot games.

Truth.

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Quote: Originally posted by CDanaT on Apr 6, 2012

What a great story........... with a wealthy "anonymous" ending.......... Wouldn't it be nice to go down the street with a grin on your face everyday for many years to come knowing that you have a little 100 million dollar secret  ????

Yea, i normally have a smile for ppl. i meet up w/ so no one would suspect.....

ohh wait, at work ppl. would say...whats w/ you ? then i would have to.... oh ...nevermind i won't be there. LOL

HiFi's avatarHiFi

look this is the town where the ticket was won.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottawa,_Kansas   looks like the old west, thats how small this town is.  i think it would be tough to really remain anonymous.

CDanaT's avatarCDanaT

Quote: Originally posted by HiFi on Apr 6, 2012

look this is the town where the ticket was won.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottawa,_Kansas   looks like the old west, thats how small this town is.  i think it would be tough to really remain anonymous.

Thats where the ticket was purchased, didnt say the winner lived there correct ??.....Could have been someone passing through

THRIFTY's avatarTHRIFTY

Quote: Originally posted by haymaker on Apr 6, 2012

Yes Thrifty it should, but once a state starts out w/ public disclosure, its going to be difficult to change that.

 

ps my ditto comment was at the 1st 2 posters.

The world's biggest lottery jackpot is won in two states where you can claim it anonymously and in one  state that you can't.

Mega Millions is doing such a great job.

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Quote: Originally posted by HiFi on Apr 6, 2012

anonymous is lame.  we should atleast see who won to proove that its real.  on a side note, if you live in a small town where the winning ticket was purchased and you lived there for many years an suddenly your house is up for sale, the townspeople will know who the winner was.

        Is there evidence that letting the winner remain anon. has cost the lottery players ?

anon. could have the oppisite effect, if PA. was anon. maybe they would'nt  be trying to "sell" their operation.

guessing you're in PA.  if it changed to anon. would you quit playing ?

THRIFTY's avatarTHRIFTY

Quote: Originally posted by PlayTwoWin on Apr 6, 2012

If you want to retire with millions and have a quiet life.. Earn it. If you win out of pure luk it should be known publicly. If you can't handle the attention maybe don't play. Stick to your local smaller jackpot games.

Truth.

How about not playing the lottery since players are not treated fairly?

Can we say that Kansas lottery officials kept the money for themselves. Where is the real winner? I do not see any. Have you seen any?

The should have shown at least a picture of the winning ticket. I do not see any integrity in Kansas lottery.

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