Mega Millions winner chooses $182M payout

Published 8:25 am Friday, January 24, 2020

CLEVELAND (AP) — Whoever bought the winning Ohio ticket for a $375 million Mega Millions prize last month will remain a mystery, at least publicly.

The jackpot — the largest Ohio Lottery prize ever won — was claimed in trust, the lottery said. The winner or winners chose the cash option prize equivalent, meaning they get a lump payment now of about $182.5 million after tax withholdings of 28 percent, rather than a higher amount paid out over several decades.

The winning ticket for the Dec. 17 drawing was bought at a Giant Eagle supermarket in Mentor, a Cleveland suburb. The buyer used the auto lotto feature and ended up with the winning numbers: 22, 30, 53, 55, 56 and 16.

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The jackpot for that drawing was advertised at $372 million but was later revised, a lottery spokeswoman said Thursday.