$1.13 Billion Mega Millions Jackpot Still Unclaimed 6 Months Later

Published: 9/27/2024, 9:07:35 AM EDT

$1.13 Billion Mega Millions Jackpot Still Unclaimed 6 Months Later — Numbers on tickets for the Mega Millions lottery are selected by a purchaser in Los Angeles on Aug. 4, 2023. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)

A New Jersey Mega Millions player has not claimed the estimated $1.13 billion jackpot prize six months later, according to a news release.

Mega Millions lottery officials said on Thursday that the winner of the March 26 drawing has yet to come forward. Lottery winners in New Jersey have one year from the date of the drawing to claim their prize before the ticket expires, giving the winner until March 26, 2025, to file the claim.

“While it is not unusual for winners of large jackpots to take their time to file a claim, we do urge all players to check their tickets,” lottery officials said. “We recommend the lucky winner seek professional legal and financial advice.”

It was the first winning jackpot of the year and the fifth-largest Mega Millions jackpot in the game’s history. The winning numbers were 7, 11, 22, 29, and 38, with the gold Mega Ball 4 and the Multiplier number 2.

According to the news release, if the New Jersey winner claims the prize, they can choose the cash option and take home an estimated $536.6 million.

The ticket was purchased at ShopRite Liquor #781, 2200 Route 66, Neptune Township, Monmouth County, lottery officials said.

Lottery officials said a 2020 New Jersey law allows lottery winners to remain anonymous indefinitely. Under the State’s Open Public Records Act, the winners' identities will not be included in materials available for public inspection.

On March 27, Gretchen Corbin, Georgia Lottery President, CEO, and lead director of the Mega Millions Consortium, congratulated the winner in a news release.

“Congratulations to the New Jersey Lottery for selling a jackpot-winning ticket in Tuesday’s $1.128 billion Mega Millions drawing,” Corbin said. “We celebrate our new jackpot winner, as well as all the prizes won and dollars raised for good causes during this exciting jackpot run.”

What Happens Unclaimed Jackpot Prize?

The time limit to claim a jackpot prize varies by state; if the winner does not file a claim before the ticket expires, each participating state in the Mega Millions game will recover all the money it contributed, according to the Mega Millions website.

Each state uses the unclaimed lottery prizes for different purposes. According to the New Jersey Lottery website, at least 30 percent of the amount is required to be returned to the state as revenue. They said profits from entertainment products are used to protect retirement benefits for public servants such as teachers, police officers, firefighters, and other public employees.