The largest lottery jackpot in New York lottery history has been claimed by a group of Long Island area co-workers.
The Mega Millions draw on New Year’s Day produced a single ticket winner from New York. We’ve now learned that the $437 million jackpot has been claimed this week by a 23-member syndicate.
The winning ticket matched all five Mega Millions winning numbers for the drawing 34-44-57-62-70 and the Mega Ball 14.
The 23-member group chose to stay anonymous by forming a limited liability company. They claimed the prize through the New Life 2019, LLC.
The lottery syndicate chose to take the cash value of the annuitized prize, a single lump sum payment totaling $262,213,914. They will receive a net check of $176,155,308 after required state and federal withholding.
This was only the second time the Mega Millions jackpot has been won on New Year’s Day. The only previous January 1 winner was in Texas in 2008.
Representatives of New Life 2019, LLC said they play the Lottery weekly. Each member puts a dollar in an envelope that one member takes to purchase the group’s tickets.
“Mega” Happy New Year!
Word of the big win spread quickly when the group of co-workers started showing up for work two days after the drawing.
There was a lot of crying, hugging and jumping around that day.
Many of the members double and triple checked the ticket in disbelief.
The representatives said that most of the employees will continue working because they view themselves as a family and not just co-workers.
Plans among the New Life group for the winnings include new houses, college funds for their children, and travel.
The winning ticket was purchased at Brookville Auto Service in Glen Head, NY. The retailer will receive a $10,000 bonus from the New York Lottery for selling the jackpot winning ticket.
The New Year’s Day jackpot had been rolling over since October 23, when a $1.537 billion jackpot winning ticket was sold in South Carolina. The winner of that prize – a world record for a single lottery ticket – has not yet come forward.
Prior to New Life 2019 LLC’s $437 million win, the biggest jackpot in New York Lottery history was won by Harold Diamond of Wurtsboro. The retired elementary school principal was the sole winner of a $326M Mega Millions jackpot in 2014.
Our Take…
Joining a lottery syndicate is an excellent way to get extra jackpot winning chances at a dramatically reduced cost vs. playing alone.
Good Luck!
