The sole winner of November's record $2.04 billion (Rs 16,590 crore) lottery - the largest in US history - has finally been revealed. At a press conference on Tuesday, California Lottery officials said that the Powerball jackpot was won by Edwin Castro and he opted for the lump sum payout of $997.6 million, according to its Twitter handle. Apart from his name, no other details were revealed at the press conference. Mr Castro purchased the winning ticket in early November in Altadena, California, matching all six numbers in the drawing, according to CNN.
According to disclosure laws in California, a lottery winner's name and other relevant information is publicly revealed. But there are some conditions. USA Today said that state laws only allow disclosure of full name, the name and location of the retailer that sold the winning ticket, the date jackpot was won and amount of winnings (including details of payouts).
The lottery officials previously said that the winner had one year from the date of the draw to come forward and claim the prize. But Mr Castro declined the invitation to appear publicly.
"As you might imagine, anyone would like to largely remain private. We offer our sincere congratulations on this unbelievable and historic win," California Lottery Director Alva Johnson said at Tuesday's press conference.
The officials also read a written statement sent by the lottery winner in which the man said he was "shocked and ecstatic" to have won.
The Powerball jackpot, announced in November last year, was the biggest ever amassed, surpassing the $1.6 billion prize which went unclaimed.
After the winning ticket was announced, the service centre that sold the golden ticket received a Powerball bonus of $1 million.
Powerball is played in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, according to USA Today. Each ticket costs $2.
The odds of winning a Powerball jackpot are one in 292.2 million.
