Winning Billion Dollar Lottery Ticket Remains Unclaimed in NJ

Somewhere in New Jersey, someone is sitting on a Mega Millions lottery ticket worth 1.1 billion dollars.

Yep, billion—with a "B"! The ticket was bought at the ShopRite on Route 66 in Neptune back in March, and while the numbers were drawn that evening, no one stepped forward to claim the life-changing prize.

If you're wondering, “How could someone forget about that kind of money?”—well, it happens more than you think.

Depending on the state, winners have anywhere from 90 days to a year to claim their prize.

Fortunately, in New Jersey, the deadline is one year.

But if no one claims it, the money doesn’t just disappear—it’s returned to the states based on how much they contributed to the game.

By the way, for this unclaimed ticket, the cash value is a whopping $537.5 million!

So why hasn't anyone come forward? There are all sorts of reasons.

People often misplace tickets or forget to check their numbers. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found an old instant game ticket in my car after it expired. Of course, none of those were worth a billion dollars!

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Sometimes, people are just too overwhelmed by the idea of claiming such a huge prize. A win this big can change your life in ways you might not expect—and not always for the better. As they say, "mo' money, mo' problems."

New Jersey has its laws for handling lottery prizes.

The good news?

A 2020 law allows winners to remain anonymous, so you don’t have to worry about your name being in the headlines.

However, you do need to provide ID to lottery officials.

Plus, they’ll check to see if you owe anything like child support, student loans, or back taxes before you can collect.

So, if you bought a Mega Millions ticket from that ShopRite in Neptune, it might be worth digging through your wallet or purse.

That billion-dollar prize could still be waiting for you—just make sure you claim it before the deadline!

Source:  NJ Lottery