Four months after South Carolina's first Mega Millions jackpot win, the staggering $1.5 billion prize remains unclaimed.
That leaves two months until the six-month deadline to cash in the winning lottery ticket — and more time to speculate on what's taking the person so long to collect their winnings.
The winning ticket for the Oct. 23 drawing was sold at Simpsonville's KC Mart #7, and signs in the store window proclaim, "We sold a Mega Millions ticket worth... $1.5 billion."
Still, mystery surrounds the unclaimed jackpot as the convenience store and state officials wait for the winner to come forward.
"It wasn't me," Ray Black said with a laugh as he checked the numbers on a lottery ticket recently at the KC Mart #7.
Missing out on millions
The holder of the winning ticket could've accrued millions of dollars in interest over the past four months.
Hans Blake, principal owner of Intelligent Investing, did the math and calculated that if the winner had taken the $878 million offered as a lump-sum payment back in October and deposited it in a savings account with an interest rate of 2 percent, the money would have grown by about $5.8 million over the past four months.
And, Blake said, investing in the stock market at a 7-percent rate of return would have generated an additional $20 million or so over the past four months.
But, hey, what's a few million when you've got a $1.5 billion ticket?
With the jackpot continuing to go unclaimed, KC Mart #7 owners and the state of South Carolina also can't cash in.
The winner would pay about $60 million in state income taxes.
KC Mart #7 also can't claim their share of the winnings, around $50,000 before taxes, store manager Gee Patel said.
If the jackpot isn't claimed, the money goes back to the states that contributed to the jackpot. The amount is based on ticket sales. South Carolina's share would be about $11.2 million, South Carolina Education Lottery spokeswoman Holli Armstrong said.
Who is SC's Mega Millions winner?
Patel said that the lucky ticket has continued to bring in customers hoping that lottery lightning will strike twice.
They buy "everything" lottery-related, Patel said.
Many customers ask Patel if he knows who the winner is, but he is just as curious as they are. And he does have a theory as to why the ticket-holder has yet to claim the money.
"Maybe they are putting everything in order, you know," Patel said.
Kent Early was purchasing scratch-offs on a recent afternoon at KC Mart #7. He said he occasionally buys tickets for the weekly drawings.
"Every once in a while, on a night that I know they're fixing to draw, if I remember, and it's convenient, and I'm passing by, I'll stop by and pick a couple of numbers for either the Powerball or the Mega Millions," Early said.
Rumors about the winner have flown around town since the drawing. Early said he heard that "it was the guy in Fountain Inn or the guy in Gray Court or the guy here or there... but nobody knows."
Dale Parker said he also heard the rumors back in October, but the person's identity is still a mystery.
Parker doesn't play the lottery, but "I wish I'd played it that day," he said.
Anybody on board to think that the ticket has been lost, washed or destroyed by the sun on a dashboard? Initially thought they were waiting for the new tax year, was wrong on that account.
Time will tell...
My theory, someone bought it and did not want "that ticket" so store took it back and gave them the ticket they wanted.
I'm going with the"LoL"theory... Landfill or Lost
It's starting to look the person who bought the ticket never checked and/or tossed it in the trash. If they have video of that person buying the ticket, will SC suspend their rules and declare that person the jackpot winner?
After all with a 7% state tax, South Carolina will lose a huge chunk of change if the prize is divided among all the MM states.
As much media coverage that drawing had I doubt if that ticket was lost. I'm sure with if the store had camera surveillance they have a idea when the ticket was purchased and who purchased it. Although I see no reason in taking so long to claim maybe they just want to wait until the 11th hour. I'm sure the media coverage will heat up once the deadline gets closer. I would hate to see someone miss out on a 1.5 billion dollar windfall and I'm sure South Carolina doesn't want to miss out on the 61 million for selling the winning ticket.
Illegal drugs are a major problem in America. Fentanyl is death. Could this person have purchased the ticket and the overdosed on drugs? Possibly losing the ticket somewhere along his path. Is this reality in America today?
My guess is that it's an elderly person (70's or 80's) that buys tickets from time to time and hasn't checked it yet. Probably has the ticket in her/his purse/wallet. This person is perhaps absent minded as well.
I'm still going with the dog ate it.
Time traveller........
Came back from the future (John Titor perhaps)
bought the ticket, realized it won, went back to their time,
couldn't get back here to cash it.........yet
In New York the Mega is valid for up to one year, which should be the law for ALL STATES.
"Hans Blake, principal owner of Intelligent Investing, did the math and ..."
Apparently doesn't know much about state and federal tax withholding, since the math doesn't account for losing about 30% right off the bat. If I ever need an investment company in SC I know one that won't be in the running.
"If they have video of that person buying the ticket, will SC suspend their rules and declare that person the jackpot winner?"
I suppose they could try, but I can't imagine it would work.
Based on sales for the last couple of PB jackpots SC accounts for less than 2% of total sales. That would mean that less than $17 million of that $878 million cash value came from SC and more than $860 million came from other states. If there's no winner that money goes back to the other states, and there's not a snowball's chance in hell that those other states are going to pass up a chance to get that money back if somebody doesn't come forward and claim the prize. If SC doesn't follow the rules we'll see what's essentially the biggest lottery pool lawsuit ever.
All is not lost until the 180 day claiming deadline has past! (4/21/2019 Easter Sunday)
we'll find out sooner or later and the results will probably be any one of the infinite lame excuses
No one in their right mind will loose out on 1.5 Billion dollars.
I'm waiting for April 19th 2019 that I heard was the deadline to see if anyone comes forward
I agree and by 4/21, perhaps the MM or PB will be back at $1billion.
Maybe the winner needed time to sell his or her home, wind down a job/career commitment, etc. We have seen more than a few winners claim it after months and I am not counting the ones who never looked at the ticket till the last moment.
"The holder of the winning ticket could've accrued millions of dollars in interest over the past four months."
Let's go with the assumption the winner is getting his or her act together before cashing it in, and losing out on a few million dollars in interest or depriving the state of their take for a little while longer are not foremost in his or her thoughts. I know if I had that kind of money, making sure I'm using it to earn more money is of zero interest to me. I'm going to be about the spending, not the investing.
For most states, it is 180 days after the draw date on the ticket. There are only a handful of states that have one year limits.
In Florida, http://www.flalottery.com/faq "Prizes in Florida Lottery Draw games must be claimed within 180 days of the applicable draw date. Draw game prizes for which a single-payment cash option is available must be claimed within the first 60 days after the winning drawing to elect the cash option. Florida Lottery Scratch-Off and Fast Play game prizes must be claimed within 60 days of the official end-of-game date. Once the applicable time period has elapsed, the related Florida Lottery ticket will expire."
In terms of counting days, it is all days, not just business days M-F, I assume?
If the state doesn't have a different claim time frame Mega Millions rules apply (180 days)!
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/10/18/mega-millions-jackpot-taxes-winning-ticket-money/1680704002/
Since the last day to collect this behemoth jackpot is April 21st and that just happens to be Easter Sunday... Will the lottery actually stay open on Saturday the 20th and Sunday the 21st ?(provided it is not claimed on or before the 19th) After all, the SC website does state in the FAQ they are open Mon-Fri 8:30AM - 5PM.
http://www.sceducationlottery.com/lottery/contact/centers.asp
**I'm leaning towards yes, with $61 Million in taxes to be collected
In the SCEL website's FAQ section it states "Q: How long do I have to redeem a prize I won on an online ticket?
A: Pick 3, Pick 4, Palmetto Cash 5, Lucky For Life, Mega Millions® and Powerball® tickets can be redeemed up to 180 days after the draw date printed on the ticket. "
If the person(s) don't claim the ticket by Fri, I would assume that since by Monday the ticket will be 181 days past the drawing date and become worthless. Not even worth the $2 they paid for it on Oct 23, 2018.
They have had plenty of time so far to get their financial ducks in a row, so why not claim it already and start living the life!
Associated Press . . Unclaimed $1.5B jackpot mystery: Winner died? Ticket lost?
No one knows. Only the shadow knows! And maybe that proverbial fly on the wall.
Time will tell. tick...tick....tick....tick...
I have more trust in your US lotteries......our lotteries in South Africa is rigged as the winner is protected with anonymity (How convenient) =Lots of unclaimed tickets not claimed here -simple I dont trust them. 230 Million Powerball ticket sold here and nobody claimed it #Fishy and crooks
It was Bill Gates who won. Said he doesn't need the money.
Here's what really happened....a religious man bought some tickets, however, his uber religious wife detests gambling of any sort, including the lottery. He told her they had hit it big, but she said she will have nothing to do with dirty money. She gave him an ultimatum: either he claims the prize and get slapped with divorce papers within the week or he doesn't collect the jackpot and they continue as husband and wife. Oh, and if he claims it and she files for divorce, she said that she would seek half of the prize and donate the lion share to the pastor of her church!
So unfortunately, this jackpot will not be claimed, which is a shame because I know many of us could use even just a sliver of it!
I am going to start writing some novels...the first one will be titled, "Mega Millions: Thrills and Horrors"
I had thoughts on a similer type of lottery book, to be published after all was said,done,spentand the day after my death wiith the proceeds to be donated to the nearest no kill cat shelter
I still believe that the Huge Jackpot Prize will be claimed before it expires.
What if that winning ticket was picked up by a pandhandler, who stashed it along with all the other stuff, in a shopping cart, that they constantly wheel around the city? I have yet to see anyone approach a pandhandler to " ask" what have you got there?
I hope to win Powerball on the 20th of April. If I should win on 4/20, I will promptly fly to Africa via Amsterdam and celebrate! I cannot say how I will celebrate, but just know that I will be having a blast!
So let Powerball continue to roll for the rest of February, March and up to that date in April. Let the good times roll!
Me: Yes, by all means, roll on good times!
That is very far fetched and you have a bether chance to win pb or mm than that scenario being plausible. I always am amazed with the religious critiques. If someone believes that gambling is immoral, that is their right. But the concept of "uber religious" Christians giving all their money to a leader, is rare and does not apply to 99.9% of Christian affiliated churches. Perhaps you are thinking of cults.
I don't consider myself entitled to even a sliver of it.
One night a few weeks after buying the winning ticket, this religious man decided to take a walk through a field to clear his head and figure out what to do. As he was walking, with the ticket in his left jeans pocket, an alien spacecraft appeared and beamed him up. Aboard the ship, several large-breasted alien females commanded him to undress so they could thoroughly examine him, for, uh, science. He undressed so quickly that the ticket fell out and slid under the examination table when he wasn't looking. When he got dressed again he wasn't thinking about the lottery at all. Only after being returned to earth and waving good-bye to the space ship did he think to check his pocket, but alas, it wasn't there.
You're killing me Smalls oate!
LOL ... John Titor, that's a name I have not heard in a while. Last time I heard him was back in the Art Bell radio days.
I'm knowing many who are not that way, thank the lord, where the mind is still in tact perfectly etc.,(with the occasionally forgetting where keys are or somethin'),
but i hear ya, and i just hope he realize it he is a winner or she.
i am sad to see no 1 still has not claim it, so sad, i pray some 1 soon. smh.
night all @ lp.
g-night.
"I would assume that since by Monday the ticket will be 181 days past the drawing date and become worthless."
The rules say the ticket can be can be redeemed up to 180 days after the draw date printed on the ticket. If it has to be claimed on Friday the 18th because the lottery office isn't open on Saturday the 19th or Sunday the 20th then the winner doesn't have the 180 days that the rules allow to claim the prize. Keeping the office open is a waste if they don't know somebody is planning on coming in, and I think there's also a major legal issue with expecting a claimant to show up when the published hours say the office will be closed. The rational conclusion is that winner will be given until the next business day when the claim period ends on a day that the office is closed.
Of course I wouldn't bet the $500 million in take home cash on it, and I can't imagine any reason to wait until the very last day whatever it is.
"What if that winning ticket was picked up by a pandhandler"
What if the ticket was found by a pig that had been taught to sing, and on the following day it lost its voice in a tragic accident and has been unable to tell anyone it has the ticket or ask for a ride to the claims office?
I have my theory maybe his wife doesn't know he won so now he is secretly trying to complete his divorce process beside the state will help him stay anonymous. For now he is chilling with his mistresses lol ?? This has happened before in florida so it won't be the first time the guy even disconnected his home cable tv am not sure if his wife found him yet in miramar florida
I have my theory maybe his wife doesn't know he won so now he is secretly trying to complete his divorce process beside the state will help him stay anonymous. For now he is chilling with his mistresses lol ?? The last time i checked she is still looking for his A...
In 1999, a California woman, Denise Rossi, won $1.3 mil in the lottery and quickly filed for divorce from her husband of 25 years.
After the divorce, he found out that she had won before she filed and sued her.
Just 11 days before she filed for divorce--Denise Rossi won $1.3 million in the California Lottery.
She told no one in her divorce case, and eventually her secret caught up with her. A Los Angeles family court judge ruled that she had violated state asset disclosure laws and awarded her lottery winnings to her ex-husband. Every penny.
Superior Court Judge Richard Denner determined that she acted out of fraud or malice. He based his decision on a deposition in which Denise Rossi admitted that she concealed her winnings because she didn't want her ex-husband "getting his hands on" them.
Ex-Wife Loses Big in This Game of Chance
This maybe different south Carolina now makes it possible to hide your identity. If he is willing to hide this far what makes you think he will disclose tommorrow. And besides no law says you must tell your wife you won the lottery lol
In SC, you may be able to remain anonymous if you win the lottery, but you still must disclose the asset of the win if divorcing.
South Carolina Marital Property Laws
"When a couple divorces, any assets or property acquired during the marriage have to be divided. States do this in two main ways, community property and equitable distribution. South Carolina’s marital property laws are, like the majority of states, equitable distribution laws.
Spouses in South Carolina have a right to all marital property. Marital property is all the real and personal property acquired by the parties during the marriage and owned at the date of filing for divorce. It doesn’t matter if the family home bought during the marriage in only one spouse’s name; the other spouse also has a right to it."
l kinda like the idea of having 365 days to collect on your jackpot win, as apposed to 180 days. What l don't like, is being hurried into coming forward to claim,regardless of the time frame. It could be likened to a person standing at a bus stop, the bus shows up , but the person waves it on, only to have the driver stop & say " l am here, ready for you to board, but the passenger insists they waiting for the next bus.Does the driver " get it " or insist that this passenger must board the bus?
Yes, it is better to have 365 days as opposed to 180 to claim a draw prize, but why wait that long?
In this case, where the prize was won on Oct 23, 2018, I would have claimed on Jan 2, 2019. That would have been enough time to get together with a financial team and lawyer. It would have obvious tax advantages to claim in 2019 instead of at the end of 2018.
Think about all the interest that is being lost every day by not having that money invested. It comes to over $1 mil every month that passes.
l understand what you saying, completely. But as a winner,l want to make the choice as to whether l can come forward early or not. I guess my response is based on an incident that happened in my fair city back in 2012. A MM jackpot winner had his face plastered on TV after just 45 days, why? Because the CA lottery felt that the winner was " taking too long " to come forward & claim the prize.
In this case, the State seems to be pushing the winner to come forward, because they " need those funds" to balance their books. Perhaps this winner/ winners do not care about the interest on this jackpot. Winning that amount of money is mindboggling to say the least.
Consider those scenes in movies where a bank is being robbed, the one guy is a lookout, hears police sirens and shouts" Cops coming, wrap it up back there." But the new bank robber hire, decides there is still loads to bag, resulting in them being caught exiting the building.. all because the new guy was worried about those few piles ( interest ) left behind.. Get my drift?
The more plausible version is that the aliens threw back the small fish and the ticket flew into the air and was incinerated in the space ship departure fumes. The man has been hiding out since then to come up with a good story since he was the first alien throwback in 40 years.
Artist,
Was it Andy Devine from the Twilight Zone, the episode where he was quite a teller of tall tales?
Remember, he got abducted, then started plating a harmonica, the aliens couldn't stand it and he got away.........
Exactly Coin Toss. I was thinking of that story. Because of his tall tales, they thought he was the most important person on earth.
Everybody is missing "door number three", which is simply calling lottery headquarters, confirm you're holding the winning ticket, and say you'll validate the ticket when you're ready. And the fact lottery winners in South Carolina can claim anonymously makes "getting personal affairs in order" pretty much irrelevant considering the size of this jackpot.
Way back in the day it was uncommon for the Ohio Lotto to have a solo winner and some of the jackpots were split by ten or more winners. After a three way split, only two players came forward with winning tickets and after the 180 days expired, the two winners sued for the remaining third. The case was settled out of court, but after that the live TV drawing hosts suggested jackpot winners should at the very least call lottery headquarters. This was before there was a cash option and calling lottery headquarters doesn't validate the ticket or prove the caller holds the winning ticket.
I doubt the average lottery player has so much baggage they need months to try to hide and there is the pesky IRS deduction off the top regardless of how many tax experts they hire. This winner has until April 15, 2020 or longer before they will pay the rest of the tax burden making waiting to assemble a "tax team" before validating the ticket not very smart.
"Perhaps this winner/ winners do not care about the interest on this jackpot"
That's assuming the winner will take the cash option. IMO, the ticket is lost, forgotten about, or something happened to the winner.
That's the one gy65! Thanks for posting!
Then when he got back to the store where they all hung out he was telling them all about the spaceship and they just knew it was another tall tale.
They will probably claim through a blind trust.
Why?
South Carolina lets winners claim anonymously.
There's always the chance the winner heard the stories about all the bad things that have happened to big winners and decided it isn't worth it. So he trashed the ticket.
Also there's always the chance the winner could be someone who is living off the grid for whatever reason and doesn't want or need any publicity or attention. Witness protection, whistle blower, covert operations, under cover informant etc., and has reason to fear for his life.
You really ought to look at the definition of "blind trust" because that's usually for politicians after winning an election to avoid a conflict of interest.
If they bought their tickets through a subscription.Then maybe.
Perhaps you right Stack. However if that were true, does the SC lottery have an obligation to tell the State politicians not to sweat it, because the millions of dollars they are salivating over, will come through for them in the nick of time?
Your 2nd paragraph reminded me of the movie " Shooter." In particular- Bob Lee Swagger. Grows & shoots his own food.
I think the ticket has been lost.
There never was a winner.once again,the lottery has lied!
Guess the legislators and budget people are in on it as well or is the Lottery director & staff superior to the elected officials they report to ? Maybe the governor is in on it ?
" We're starting to get nervous about whether that $61 million is realistic," Frank Rainwater, director of the state Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office, told legislators during a briefing on state revenue estimates Tuesday. "
All you gotta do is prove it.
Your burden of proof is exactly what?
South Carolina is anxious for the winner of the Mega Millions $1,537,000,000 jackpot to come forward and claim their ticket so the state can collect on the windfall of taxes.
If he ticket holder(s) take a lump sum cash payout, they will receive $877,800,000 before taxes. The I.R.S. would take 24% or $210,672,000 off the top, with another 13% due on April 15, 2020. And, the State of South Carolina would receive their 7% tax of $61,446,000 which they have already figured into their budget.
Forget door #3 or what's behind the curtain........WHAT IF..........
The winner(s) doesn't take the lump sum one time cash payout and opts for annuity payments instead. After all, each payment is about $51,233,333 before taxes. They would receive a total of 30 payments (one right away and one each year for the next 29 years) and South Carolina won't get over $61 mil in taxes anyway.
According to the jackpot analysis on USAmega.com MEGA MILLIONS ANNUITY JACKPOT ANALYSIS FOR SOUTH CAROLINA (OCT. 23, 2018 DRAWING) South Carolina would end up with over $107 mil in taxes, but only after all 30 payments have been made.
Karma got the best of the person.
Let's throw this one around......
the winner knows exactly what they are doing, might be a lurker at LP, and just wanted to see how many kokamamie* theories people came up with before they cash the ticket.
* intentionally misspelled to get passed the censor
Lol
They mistook it for rolling paper and smoked it.
Oh wow man!
OK, you’re on to me. It HAS been entertaining but I’ll end the suspense and go turn in the ticket by the end of next week.
The Unclaimed Prize fund for AZ is sure gonna benefit from this if it is not claimed. State officials will put on the gloves to get some of the $.
Lol. I knew it! The move was a cover story.
I hope the ticket holder comes forward.
LottoLucy,
I hope your post hasn't jammed your mailbox with "I've got an idea how you can make some serious money" messages!
Just when it was getting good...
Now we're gonna have to start another thread about it with all new conspiracy theories.
I’m going to be so much trouble if the real winner turns in the ticket before the end of next week.
No annuity. When I do become a billionaire it will be cash all the way!
Luckily no one took me seriously!
How is this for a new conspiracy. The real winner IS lurking here. He or she is now laughing about how they’re going to set me up by turning in the ticket in the time frame I mentioned...
jejeje I do love the smell of a valid conspiracy
but heres to hoping the winner/s come forward soon
7 weeks and a wake-up.............................................................................tic toc
I think the husband and wife got into a huge argument on how they would spend the money, and one of them tore up the ticket!
jejeje
Thank You all who have posted on this page #6. I appreciate your sense of humor. I got a good laugh from it. LottoLucy is a trouble maker! LOL!!
I am beginning to believe the money will not be claimed. The amount of interest being lost is so much.
Maybe he's an out of towner in an unhappy marriage and he's filing for divorce from his cheating wife and the thought of her and her new lover getting half of that cash is sickening.
Just a thought
Tuesday's (3/1/19)Mega Millions jackpot was won in NJ.
Let's see how long it takes until that one is claimed.
Congrats to the winner.
I heard a group of people won it , why because I know of a person , who knows
one of the winner. I haven't heard anymore since that time .
Wow that long ago , I remember reading that article .....
The spouse deserve to win , after all the woman , was married
to him , buying the ticket .
Many years ago , reading an article where a guy shared his winning
to his girlfriend . That was very thoughtful of him !!
When a big lottery jp win is unclaimed for a while, a lot of people will start insisting they won it or know who won. I would ignore such claims.
Lol. You would not post if you won. Just like me.
But seriously, the longer it is unclaimed, it will cause some loonies to insist they won or know who won. Sit back and watch.