After $1.586 billion Powerball win, how California couple spent prize money
Marvin and Mae Acosta bought $1.586 billion Powerball ticket at 7-Eleven in Chino Hills, California, said they would dedicate nearly all the prize money to a trust and charities.
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- John and Lisa Robinson of Munford, Tennessee, were first to claim their share of $1.586 billion Powerball and took the lump sum.
- Powerball winners David Kaltschmidt and Maureen Smith of Melbourne Beach, Florida, also took the cash, $327 million before taxes.
- Marvin and Mae Acosta of California claimed their share of the $1.586 billion Powerball winnings, $528.8 million.
- Edwin Castro of Altadena, California, is the biggest lottery winner ever with $2.04 billion Powerball from November 2022.
What would you do if won a $1.586 billion Powerball prize?
Shout it from the rooftop? Post a lottery ticket selfie on social media?
For one California couple, privacy was the ultimate goal.
After they became one of the three winners in the historic Jan. 13, 2016, Powerball drawing, Marvin and Mae Acosta’s lives as multimillionaires began with a detailed plan.
Here are things to know about the historic $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot, its winners and how some of that Powerball prize money was spent.
Who won $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot on Jan. 13, 2016?
Powerball made history Jan. 11, 2016, the first time a lottery jackpot hit $1 billion. After no one matched all five numbers plus the Powerball in the (Saturday) Jan. 9, 2016, drawing for $949 million, the Monday jackpot soared to $1.4 billion. (No one won that drawing either.) Powerball made history again when three tickets matched all six numbers to win $1.586 billion in the (Wednesday) Jan. 13, 2016, drawing.
The jackpot started Nov. 4, 2015, at $40 million. It had rolled over almost 30 times from Nov. 4, 2015, to Jan. 13, 2016, before three tickets from California, Tennessee and Florida claimed the grand prize (see below). The winners were Marvin and Mae Acosta from Chino Hills, California; John and Lisa Robinson from Munford, Tennessee; and Maureen Smith and David Kaltschmidt from Melbourne Beach, Florida. The winning numbers were 4-8-19-27-34 and Powerball 10.
3 tickets won $1.586 billion Powerball. Who claimed lottery jackpot first?
John and Lisa Robinson of Munford, Tennessee, were the first to claim their share of the record $1.586 billion jackpot − and they did it on national television. On Jan. 15, 2016, two days after the drawing, the couple was interviewed on the “Today” show by Savannah Guthrie and Carson Daly, though at the time, the morning show hosts could not officially verify the Powerball win since the couple hadn’t appeared in person at the Tennessee Lottery to claim their prize. The couple and their daughter, Tiffany, appeared on the morning show with their lawyer, Joe Townsend, and his daughter, Ilene, as a way to “control” the story.
The Robinsons, with their daughter, Tiffany, and rescue dog, Abby, on Jan. 15, 2016, appeared at the Tennessee Lottery headquarters. During the press conference that day, the Robinsons asked the public for their privacy, admitting they are “common folk from a small town.”
John Robinson and Lisa Robinson took the lump sum − a little more than $327 million before taxes − though they posed with a giant $528.8 million check, Tennessee Lottery officials said. They received a couple of million dollars immediately and about 10 days later, they were to receive the remainder of the prize, according to a 2016 USA TODAY story.
The Robinsons bought their winning Powerball ticket at Naifeh’s Food Market, one of three lottery retailers in their hometown of 6,000 residents about 30 miles northeast of Memphis, Tennessee. The store received a $25,000 bonus.
When did the other winners from $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot claim their prize?
In 2016, FLORIDA TODAY reported Maureen Smith and David Kaltschmidt bought their winning Powerball ticket at a Publix in Melbourne Beach, Florida. The couple claimed their prize as the Nickel 95 Trust and waited until February 2016 to claim their share of the grand prize.
Six months after the drawing, Marvin and Mae Acosta of California claimed their Powerball winnings of $528.8 million.
Where did the Acostas of California buy their winning Powerball ticket?
Marvin and Mae Acosta bought their ticket at a 7-Eleven in Chino Hills, California, a quiet community about 35 miles east of Los Angeles. After the location of the lottery retailer was revealed, people crowded the store and parking lot, posing for TV news crews and chanting the city’s name in celebration of its sudden celebrity, according to a 2016 New Jersey Herald story. Store owner Balbir Atwal said he collected $1 million from the state lottery for selling the winning ticket and his lottery sales were up 80 percent at the 7-Eleven, the story states.
Why did $1.586 billion Powerball winners from California wait 6 months to claim their prize?
Marvin Acosta and Mae Acosta waited six months to claim their share of the $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot to work with lawyers and financial advisers to help them handle their grand prize money. While John and Lisa Robinson of Munford, Tennessee, appeared on the “Today” show with Savannah Guthrie and Carson Daly two days after the historic Powerball drawing to “nationally” claim their share, the Acostas did the opposite. Privacy was No. 1 for the couple from California, a state that releases lottery winner information as public record. (Tennessee and Florida also release info about lottery winners.)
When the couple did appear in person at the state lottery office, they were flanked by security, according to the California lottery. Unlike their Powerball winner counterparts, there were no photos of the Acostas released to the media, and there was no official press conference. They requested other personal information remain private.
If you win Powerball in California, can you stay anonymous?
If you win a California Lottery game, your personal information is subject to public disclosure:
- Your full name
- name and location of the retailer who sold you the winning ticket
- date you won
- amount of your winnings, including your gross and net installment payments
California Lottery’s corporate communications division will handle media availability when the prize is claimed. There is no official communication from the lottery about a winner after the prize is claimed.
What did $1.586 billion Powerball winner from California do with their share?
In a statement, the Acostas said they would dedicate nearly all of the prize money to a trust and charities. “We are thankful and blessed for the rare gift that has been placed in our care,” they said.
According to a 2016 story by the New Jersey Herald, property records showed a couple with the same names purchased a 5-bedroom home for $475,000 in Eastvale, a Southern California community about 10 miles from the 7-Eleven where the winning ticket was purchased. A neighbor said the couple who lived there had two children and moved out a day before the ($1.586 billion Powerball) prize was claimed, the story states.
Public records showed Marvin Acosta was 39 years old and Mae Acosta was 40 at the time of the win.
Sangalang is a lead digital producer for the USA TODAY Network. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.
This content is sourced from www.tcpalm.com and is shared for informational purposes only.
