The American Mega Millions jackpot has been hit. The prize? An absurd $1.337 billion dollars (€1.307 billion euros). This mega jackpot is active in 44 US states. Mega Millions is so popular because of its extremely high jackpots of at least $15 million dollars. The jackpot had already failed to hit 29 times, causing the price to skyrocket. Americans bought lottery tickets en masse because of this. The winning ticket was purchased at a Speedway gas station in Des Plaines, near Chicago.
A prize of $1,337 billion dollars
Imagine having a chance to win more than $1 billion on indiancustomer.in. Few people would not run to the store to buy some lottery tickets. Consequently, the lines in front of the stores were infinitely long. Not all states participate in the sale of Mega Millions lottery tickets. Many people got in their cars to drive to another state to buy a lottery ticket. The price kept rising as more and more lottery tickets were sold. The final prize was $1.337 billion dollars.
The winner has not come forward so far. Sometimes winners choose to remain anonymous, but with a prize like this, that will be very difficult. People can also buy a lottery ticket together. The Mega Millions organization does not yet know if the winning ticket belongs to one or more people.
The Mega Millions can be paid out in two ways. The winner can choose to have the amount paid out over 30 years. A substantial portion is paid out at the beginning. The rest then follows in parts over the next 29 years. Another option is to have the money paid out immediately.
Amazingly, the $1.337 billion figure is not even the highest amount ever. In 2018, a record $1.537 billion fell in South Carolina. A year ago, a billion also fell in Michigan.
Multiple winners
Not only the owner of the winning ticket receives a prize. All outlets selling Mega Millions lottery tickets get 1% of the grand prize if they sell the winning ticket. In this case, the owners get about a $500,000 dollar.
In addition to the point of sale, of course, the state also shares. In America, half of the proceeds from the lottery go to the state where the ticket was sold. The money is used for education, pensions, civil servants and other public duties.
DJ Khaled buys stack of lottery tickets
The Mega Millions craze is also reaching stars. DJ Khaled - with an estimated wealth of $75 million - bought stacks of tickets for the Mega Millions lottery. The record producer shared a video of himself on Instagram where he holds all the lottery tickets. When DJ Khaled made the post, the value of the jackpot was estimated at $1.02 billion dollars.
DJ Khaled is a respected DJ and record producer. This success did not come to him. During his childhood, his family struggled to make ends meet. The successful DJ now takes care of his entire family. He says that everyone can fall down, but he always gets back up. His life experience is said to have helped him get to the top. It is unlikely that Khaled won the Mega Millions. The DJ had probably posted on social media.
The co-founder of Quality Control Music Pierre Thomas did the same thing as Khaled. He bought a large number of tickets. This resulted in angry Twitter users. He responded to the commotion and didn't understand why others had a problem with this.
When, and if, the $1.337 billion dollar winner will come forward is unknown.
