Lottery prizes soar to £1.2 billion after months without jackpot winners
Two massive jackpots worth a total of $1.5 billion (£1.2 billion) are waiting to be won this weekend for Illinois Lottery players.
Lottery officials have confirmed the Powerball jackpot for Saturday night is up to $443 million (£350 million). Meanwhile, the Mega Millions jackpot for Friday night has reached $607 million (£480 million).
Tickets for the Powerball and Mega Millions each cost $2 and for a dollar more players can also add the Megaplier or Power Play. Tickets are available to purchase at a local store or on the Illinois Lottery app or website.
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The Mega Millions jackpot has been growing since December 8, 2023, after two winners in Michigan won a $842 million jackpot, lottery officials said and it is now the eighth-largest jackpot in history. The last time the Powerball jackpot was won was January 1, 2024. .
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Meanwhile a lottery winner from North Carolina who bagged a whopping $878million ( £694,577,020) jackpot waited more than 100 days to claim her prize, it has emerged.
A sign shows the Mega Millions Jackpot at 1.25 billion dollars on August 02, 2023 in Miami, Florida (Getty Images)The woman randomly decided to take a "scenic drive" when she spotted a billion-dollar jackpot sign at the KC Mart in the city of Simpsonville on October 23, 2018. It was revealed that she let a store clerk pick her numbers and let another customer go in front of her before she purchased the ticket.
"After checking her ticket the morning after the drawing, she was in complete shock and disbelief. She stared motionless at the ticket for what felt like hours, then came the jumping and screams of joy," her lawyer, Jason Kurland told .
The massive win, which has been hailed as the third-biggest jackpot of all time, came with a lot of decision making. Local media reported at the time that she didn't officially come forward to claim the prize for a staggering 131 days.
Another man, from Oregon, wasn't even aware that he was sitting on an $8.4 million (£6.6 million) jackpot for more than a month. David Schultze was completely oblivious to the fact he was sitting on millions of dollars, until he checked a lottery ticket he had forgotten he'd bought.
David, from Milwaukie, Oregon, bought his ticket about a month before the drawing, which was held on January 24. But the 68-year-old retiree completely forgot until one day in February when he remembered the purchase and, on a whim, decided to have a look at his ticket.
After seeing his ticket matched every number on the drawing, David spent the weekend sat in shock. But on Monday, he travelled to the Oregon Lottery's office to claim his prize. He hasn't revealed any big plans for the money as of yet, but said investment is a likely option.
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