Maryland Mega Millions Winner Claims Share Of $656 Million Jackpot

BALTIMORE -- The holder of a winning Mega Millions ticket sold in Maryland claimed a share of the record-breaking $656 million prize on Monday, but will remain anonymous, state lottery officials announced.

The winner claimed the prize at lottery headquarters with a ticket matching all six numbers: 2-4-23-38-46 and the Mega Ball, 23, said Maryland Lottery spokeswoman Carole Everett. The winner will remain anonymous, but officials will share some details at a news conference Tuesday morning, she said. Maryland does not require lottery winners to be identified.

The jackpot was the biggest in Mega Millions history, and the three winners – one each in Maryland, Illinois and Kansas – will each receive more than $218 million before taxes. Kansas' winner claimed a share of the jackpot Friday, but also decided to remain anonymous.

Lottery players waited in long lines to buy tickets as the jackpot gradually climbed, leaving millions of losers to grumble about their misfortune and dream of what they would have done with all that money.

Maryland's winner bought the ticket at a 7-Eleven store in Milford Mill outside Baltimore. An attorney for a Baltimore woman who initially claimed she had the winning ticket, then said she had misplaced it, did not immediately return a call seeking comment Monday evening.

Maryland has been the home of Mega Millions winners in the past. In 2007, Ellwood "Bunky" Bartlett won roughly $27 million after taxes.

Check out some crazy lottery stories:

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• New York Brothers Charged With Scamming $5 Million Lottery Ticket

  Two brothers from central New York who <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/13/andy-and-nayel-ashkar-lottery-scam_n_2123886.html">claimed a $5 million lottery ticket sold at their family's store were accused in November 2012 of scamming the winning ticket from a customer.</a> Andy Ashkar, 34, and Nayel Ashkar, 36, are charged with second-degree attempted grand larceny and fourth-degree conspiracy.

• Chicago Man Wins New Jersey Lottery While Cleaning Up After Hurricane Sandy

  John Turner, a 38-year-old Chicago man, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/11/john-turner-wins-lottery-_n_2105194.html">bought a winning $100,000 lottery ticket </a>after coming to New Jersey to help clean up after Hurricane Sandy. Turner runs National Catastrophe Solutions of Chicago, a local water removal business.

• Homeless Man Wins $200,000 Lottery Prize

  A homeless man in Greenville, S.C. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/19/homeless-man-wins-lottery-greenville_n_1989771.html">won $200,000 from a scratch-off lottery game</a> in October 2012.

• Teen Cancer Survivor Wins Mega Millions Lottery

  Nicholas Ruth, a 19-year-old cancer survivor, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/26/nicholas-ruth-teen-cancer-survivor-mega-millions-lottery-video_n_1916132.html">matched five of the six numbers in the state's Mega Millions lottery</a>, earning himself a second-tier prize of $250,000 in September 2012. After taxes, Ruth will have about $165,000 to spend and plans to donate some of his money back to the organizations that helped him with his leukemia.

• Friends Win Mega Millions Jackpot After Playing Together For 25 Years

  Willie McPherson, 74, and Christopher Manzi, 44, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/06/mcpherson-manzi-mega-millions-lottery-25-years_n_1944181.html#slide=757174">won a $14 million jackpot in September 2012 </a>after playing the Mega Millions lottery together for 25 years, according to the New York Post. The two had been buying lottery tickets together after becoming friends while working at Manzi’s print shop in Manhattan.

• Lotto Winner Found Million Dollar Ticket While Cleaning Out Desk

  Retired hospice chaplain Ron Yurcus <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/15/ron-yurcus-glen-ellyn-lot_n_2139308.html">stumbled across a million-dollar miracle when he found a winning lottery ticket while cleaning out his desk</a> in November 2012. He had purchased the Powerball ticket from a BP gas station two months earlier.

• Geniuses Outsmart Massachusetts Cash WinFall

  A group including MIT undergraduates and a biomedical researcher <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/02/massachusetts-cash-winfall-lottery_n_1729416.html" target="_hplink">discovered a loophole in the Cash WinFall game</a> that netted them nearly $48 million. Apparently, lottery officials knew about the scam since at least 2010, but did nothing about it because it generated $16 million in revenue for the state.

• Man Wins Lotto, Bails Himself Out Of Jail

  After John Ross Jr. won a 'Set For Life' scratch off game, he was looking forward to turning his life around. However, Ross soon <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/12/john-ross-california-lott_n_1590089.html" target="_hplink">found himself behind bars</a> after he allegedly helped a woman hide and repair a stolen car.

• Clerk Steals Winning Ticket From Great-Grandma

  A store clerk in England tried to turn in 77-year-old Maureen Holt's winning lottery ticket himself after <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/02/lottery-ticket-stolen-from-great-grandmother_n_1733871.html" target="_hplink">telling her it was a losing ticket</a>.

• Woman's Friend Steals Winning Scratch-Off

  A South Carolina woman's luck stopped short after she told a few friends about her winning $500 ticket. Willie Jones, a friend of the winner, was <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/19/south-carolina-stolen-lottery-ticket_n_1686630.html" target="_hplink">charged with stealing her ticket</a>.

• Controversy Over Record Mega Millions Jackpot

  After <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/06/mirlande-wilson-mega-millions-mcdonalds_n_1408105.html" target="_hplink">McDonald's employee Mirlande Wilson</a> falsely claimed she won Mega Millions' record $656 million jackpot, three <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/10/maryland-mega-millions-winner_n_1414857.html?ref=money#s785675&title=Undocumented_Immigrant_Awarded" target="_hplink">Maryland school teachers</a> stepped forward to claim their share of the prize.

• Woman 'Hides' Winning Ticket At McDonald's

  Mirlande Wilson, a McDonald's employee in Baltimore, claimed she <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/02/mirlande-wilson-maryland-mcdonalds-worker_n_1396943.html" target="_hplink">had won the record-high $656 million Mega Millions jackpot </a>and that she <a href="http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/what_mega_mess_wHA9HVdfxA1VDSqWn58KtJ" target="_hplink">was not going to share her winnings</a> with co-workers, who alleged that Wilson was a part of a workplace lottery pool. Wilson announced that she had <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/04/marlinde-wilson-mega-millions-winner-ticket-mcdonalds_n_1402892.html" target="_hplink">hid the winning ticket at a McDonald's</a> and subsequently <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/06/mirlande-wilson-mega-millions-mcdonalds_n_1408105.html" target="_hplink">claimed to have lost the ticket</a>. In the end, it was revealed<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/10/maryland-mega-millions-winner_n_1414857.html" target="_hplink"> Wilson never even had the winning ticket</a>.

• Teen Finds Ticket In Messy Bedroom

  Ryan Kitching, a Scottish teenager,<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/04/ryan-kitching-teenage-winning-lottery-tickert-clean-room_n_1319413.html" target="_hplink"> found a winning lottery ticket hiding in his bedroom</a> after his mother told him to clean his room. The ticket is worth more than $80,000.

• Chicago Couple Keeping Millions Secret

  One Chicago couple won <a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-11-06/news/ct-met-anonymous-lottery-20111106_1_lottery-winners-illinois-lottery-lottery-jackpot" target="_hplink">$30 million in the Illinois lottery</a>, but didn't even tell their kids, according to the <em>Chicago Tribune</em>.

• Connecticut Money Managers Win Big Jackpot

  Greg Skidmore, Brandon Lacoff and Tim Davidson, who work at an asset management firm in Greenwich, one of the most affluent towns in America, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/29/254-million-jackpot-connecticut-money-managers_n_1119321.html">came forward as lottery winners in 2011</a>. Their lawyer said they formed a trust to manage the money after Davidson bought the $1 winning ticket at a Stamford gas station.

• Lotto Winner Continued To Collect Food Stamps

  Amanda Clayton, 24-year-old from the Detroit-area,<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/08/amanda-clayton-michigan-lottery-food-assistance-stamps_n_1330716.html" target="_blank"> continued collecting $200 in government food assistance</a> after she won a $1 million lotto prize.

• Undocumented Immigrant Awarded Lotto Prize After Lawsuit

  <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/09/jose-antonio-cua-toc-undocumented-immigrant-lottery-ticket_n_1334564.html" target="_hplink">Jose Antonio Cua-Toc, a foreign national from Guatemala,</a> sued his former boss to reclaim his lotto money, which he had given to his employer out of fear of being exposed as an undocumented immigrant. Cua-Toc won the lawsuit.

• Iowa Lottery Winner Claims $16.5 Million Prize At Last Minute

  The winner of an <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/30/iowa-lottery-winner-last-minute_n_1176971.html">Iowa Lottery ticket in 2011 </a>valued at $16.5 million waited until two hours before the deadline to claim the prize. The ticket was purchased nearly one year ago.

• Winning $80K Lottery Ticket Donated To Burglarized Georgia Church

  In 2011, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/03/winning-80k-lottery-ticke_n_947272.html">an anonymous donor stepped in to help a Georgia church that was burglarized with a winning $80,000</a> lottery ticket the Associated Press reports.

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Comments

[rosal68]

11:28 AM on 04/11/2012

was she lying or because the winner remains anonymous that we will never know.. just think ..to stressful from co-workers and ah i quit... going back to my homeland and getting onward to another country where no one know's me and laughing all the way to the bank with her lottery winning's that she kept to herself... she not only fooled everyone but her co-workers to.

[queenti2]

10:17 AM on 04/11/2012

I knew that chick was lying all along!

[dredselw]

11:18 AM on 04/11/2012

Maybe she had 5 numbers and didn't want to share. There is something not right here!

[captaingoodwin1]

10:13 AM on 04/11/2012

That made that woman look like a selfish, creep! If that was her moment of fame what a loser!

[Chanee Williams]

12:37 AM on 04/11/2012

Its very odd. This story isn't over. She didn't tell the lottery commission that she had the ticket. She told her coworker, who in turn made such a big deal out it that the story drew the attention of the media. From their it grew. If there are no charges pressed, you can best believe that there was some truth to her story. Lol! Its still funny though. Good night.

[dredselw]

11:14 AM on 04/11/2012

You are right! She didn't misplace the ticket, she just found a way to keep more of the money through the lawyer! I'm sure the three anonymous winners would lie for a mere million each! I hope the truth comes out and she loses everything if there is something crooked here! Besides there is a time and date when the ticket was bought that should provide some clues!

[Andrea Blackwell]

09:04 PM on 04/10/2012

Wow, that's a LOT of blue crabs!

[Jlg1067]

08:41 PM on 04/10/2012

Ok, since I have trust issues, I'm just gonna say, she probably did have the ticket, didn't misplace it, found it easier to share with 3 others then 16 or so from Mickey D's.. Just saying, she may not be as dumb as first thought... Just sneaky.. Why would the 3 educators remain anonymous but state they intend to remain employed... wonder if either of them teach one of her 7 children.. Lawyer looks shady too, maybe he assisted! Not likely to take a case without knowing how he is going to get paid.. Just a thought!

[dredselw]

11:15 AM on 04/11/2012

You are on the money as far as I'm concerned!

[jskydell]

07:19 PM on 04/10/2012

Winning the lottery does NOT chance your life it only changes THE WAY YOU LIVE YOUR LIFE.

[nannymel]

10:40 AM on 04/11/2012

IT would change my life and my families. I could get some much needed medical help for my dad and send my nieces & nephew to the best schools.

[Swainmo22]

07:02 PM on 05/10/2012

How do you know? Have you won it?

[Sandy Evans]

06:40 PM on 04/10/2012

So happy for the winners..Just wonder if there isn't SOME WAY that the lottery amount not be allowed to get THAT BIG...That is just way too much money for any one family to get at once.

Hopefully, they have a good financial planner and their lives will become only better by getting
that much $ at one time. We play all the time here in Florida, and my husband and I KNOW that we wouldn't tell anyone until we had an attorney and all the right things in place...even then we would only let our close family know. Enjoy, and be sure to share with less fortunate like homeless shelters, animal shelters and poor school districts in your home town.

[Pietenpol]

06:14 PM on 04/10/2012

I didn't win but if I had I'b be living large right now and looking down on all the little peaple. Perhaps one day I'll break down and buy a ticket.

[suemj]

05:06 PM on 04/10/2012

I'm happy for the lucky stiffs. Extremely jealous and wish it were me? yes! But I'm happy for them, and hope they do right and be smart.

[dmm1047]

04:52 PM on 04/10/2012

So the b&^#* never had the ticket in the first place, huh? This is hysterical.

[GrSmith]

04:05 PM on 04/10/2012

Even more perplexing that Mirlande's claim to have won the lottery--obviously she is nuts. The bigger question is the strange performance by her attorney. Was he a fake? Was that whole news conference staged?

[aritul]

02:34 PM on 04/10/2012

Can that Mirlande Wilson woman be charged for fraud?

[nannymel]

10:41 AM on 04/11/2012

I wish but I don't you can be charged unless you gained something from fraud and she's didn't get a dime.

[forgotusername]

02:01 PM on 04/10/2012

Meanwhile, back at McDonalds........."I think we made a mistake putting Mirlande in charge of the lottery pool."

[kagu632418]

01:52 PM on 04/10/2012

Good for him ... to remain anoynous that is ... Smart guy! Congratulations...