The identity of the person in South Carolina who won the $1.6 billion Mega Millions jackpot may never be revealed, a lottery official said Wednesday.
The Palmetto State is one of eight — along with Delaware, Georgia, Kansas, Maryland, North Dakota, Ohio and Texas — where winners can remain anonymous.
“Our board has a policy to protect the winner because of, you know, all the risks associated with having that much money,” South Carolina’s lottery chief William Hogan Brown told ABC’s “Good Morning America” early Wednesday.
The lucky winner can also lay low for 180 days until he or she has to claim the eye-popping prize, said Brown, who happened to be in the Big Apple on business during the drawing.
When asked at which store the world-record breaking ticket was bought, Brown said, “We hope to be able to release that by lunchtime today.
“Our security officials are there making sure all the protocols are followed and like I say, hopefully we’ll be able to release that soon,” he added.
The $1.6 billion prize reflects the annuity option, which is paid over 29 years, but nearly all winners take the cash option, which for Tuesday’s drawing was about $913 million.
The winning numbers were 5, 28, 62, 65, 70 and Mega Ball 5.
The odds of matching all six numbers and winning the top prize is 1 in 302.5 million.
The jackpot grew so massive because it had been nearly three months since a player had matched all six numbers and won the top prize.
The last time that happened was July 24, when 11 co-workers from California won a $543 million prize.
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Credit: NY Post</>
via USAHint.com
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