California – ThePowerball winner who purchased his lucky ticket in the tiny Riverside County city of Menifee has come forward to claim his $447.8 million prize – the 7th-largest jackpot inPowerball game history and the 10th-largest jackpot in U.S. history.
Jeff Lindsay and his family are California’s newest multi-millionaires. When asked how that felt, Jeff replied, “We are obviously thrilled with this tremendous stroke of good luck and are still getting our arms around what it means for us.”
“We congratulate Jeff and his family on their huge win,” California Lottery Director Hugo Lopez said. “This winner is informed and has already assembled a team of legal and financial advisors to help him make the most of this newfound wealth and make it last for many generations. We also understand that they plan on giving back to causes important to them and that is good news for us all. The California Lottery’s mission is to provide supplemental funding for public schools, and a portion of any Lottery tickets purchased goes towards that cause.”
Lindsay stopped at Marietta Liquor & Deli to buy someScratchers® tickets, then returned later to cash in one winner, and on a whim decided to purchase 10 Powerball tickets. The winning ticket, worth nearly half a billion dollars, actually sat on the kitchen counter until Lindsay heard that the winning jackpot ticket was purchased in Sun City and won the entire jackpot.
Marietta Liquor & Deli, which is owned by the Alberre family and located at 27985 Bradley Road in Sun City, will receive a huge $1 million retailer bonus just for selling the winning ticket. (The retailer bonus is not subtracted from the winner’s jackpot prize.)
The Lindsays do not wish to speak with media about the win and declined to take a winner photo, but they did release the following statement:
“We are private people and do not want to change who we are or become public figures and ask that people appreciate and respect our privacy. In order to help manage what has already been a somewhat overwhelming process, we have engaged a number of financial, legal and other advisors to guide us and help us make the best decisions possible.
“Once things calm down, we plan on working closely with our team of advisors to determine how to properly manage and invest this newfound wealth to ensure that we can support our family and causes that are important to us for many generations to come.”