SACRAMENTO –The winner who bought a MEGA Millions ticket in Fountain Valley that matched five out of six numbers came forward Tuesday, 45 days after winning the $198,468 prize. While she understands the public’s curiosity about her story and is willing to share the details below, she prefers to remain anonymous.
It was just a regular day of chores for the woman from Orange County who had asked her husband to wash their car. The woman explained that her husband cleaned out their car and found some trash. While going through the “trash,” he found some tickets that she had purchased. The winner said, “I usually buy tickets, leave them in the car and then forget about them until we clean it.” She adds that her husband took the tickets to a local retailer to see if she had won anything. Her husband told Lottery officials, “One ticket was worth $1, another was worth $3, and when the retailer told me that one was worth $198,468, I couldn’t believe it. I ran home to tell my wife.”
The winning ticket for the March 21st MEGA Millions draw was purchased at American Liquor located at 18027 Magnolia Street in Fountain Valley. When asked what she would do with her prize money, the winner said, “My husband told me that he wants me to get rid of everything in my closet and treat myself to a new wardrobe!” Who would argue that suggestion?
The next MEGA Millions draw takes place tonight and the jackpot is worth a whopping $120 million. Tickets cost only $1. Tickets can be purchased until 7:45 p.m. Winning numbers are drawn at 8 p.m. Players must match five numbers plus the Mega number to claim the top prize.
As jackpots rise, the California Lottery would like to remind players that gambling should be fun. Borrowing money to play, spending above a person’s budget or using money intended for other purposes can ultimately lead to significant problems for players and their families. If a player recognizes that they have a gambling problem or if someone knows of someone who may have a problem, the California Lottery recommends calling the Problem Gambling Help Line at 1-800-GAMBLER.
More than 95 cents of every Lottery dollar is returned to the community in the form of contributions to education, prizes and retail commissions. The California Lottery contributes at least 34 cents of every dollar that players spend on Lottery products to public education and returns more than 50 percent of sales to players in the form of prizes. Since its inception in 1985, the Lottery has contributed more than $20 billion to California schools out of total sales of nearly $55 billion. Retailers benefit too, earning $3.5 billion in compensation since 1985.