Billion Dollar Lottery winner Sues Ex-Girlfriend for Revealing His Win

19:25
24 Nov

A man who won $1.35 billion on the Mega Millions lottery earlier this year has filed a lawsuit against the mother of his child, accusing her of disclosing his lottery win to his family.

The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court in Maine, alleges that the man's ex-girlfriend breached a non-disclosure agreement they had signed to keep the win confidential.

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The winner opted for $723.56 million as a one-time lump sum payment, and after taxes the amount was just over $404 million.

John Doe, as he is named in the court documents, kept his name and identity a secret by having a lottery trust claim the prize for him. Maine typically does not allow lottery winners to remain anonymous but a legal loophole allowed the claimant to bypass the regulation.

The lawsuit seeks damages for the breach of contract and invasion of privacy. Doe is asking the ex-girlfriend to disclose every person she's told and pay a fine of $100,000 for each NDA violation, plus legal fees and court costs.

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The lawsuit claims that the ex-girlfriend signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) on February 8, agreeing to keep the winner's jackpot a secret until their daughter turns 18 on June 1, 2032.

The winner's lawsuit alleges that the ex-girlfriend revealed the win to the man's father and stepmother over the phone, and his sister later found out from gossiping friends.

John Doe says he "has suffered irreparable injury" from the disclosures, court papers allege.

The filing read:

“As a result of Defendant’s unauthorised disclosures, John Doe has suffered irreparable injury, and there is immediate and imminent danger that John Doe will continue to suffer irreparable injury for which there is no adequate remedy at law.”

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$2.08 Billion Powerball Claimant Facing Charges

A man who filed a lawsuit against $2.08 billion Powerball winner Edwin Castro is facing charges of his own for filing a false report.

Jose Rivera filed the report in February 2023, within a week of Castro claiming the record prize. He alleged that he bought the winning ticket and it was stolen by his previous landlord, Urachi F. “Reggie” Romero.

Rivera even went as far as conducting an interview with the New York Post in May, giving a story of how he chose the numbers as having significant meaning in his life.

The accusation was that Romero took the ticket and gave it to Castro with an agreement to split the winnings. Romero denies having any connection to Castro.

Last month, it was reported in The US Sun that City of Pasadena Public Information Officer Lisa Derderian said that Rivera was now suspected of having concocted the story.

“I was just told our police department turned over the documentation to our City Prosecutor for potential misdemeanour charges for filing a false police report.”