Cheng Saephan won $1.326 billion Powerball. How he spent prize money
Duanpen and Cheng ‘Charlie’ Saephan and Laiza Chao of Oregon won the $1.326 billion Powerball in April 2024 and took the cash prize of $422 million each.
What’s it like to win a billion-dollar lottery jackpot?
For Cheng “Charlie” Saephan of Portland, Oregon, who was undergoing cancer treatment, he was “blessed with this prize,” according to Salem Statesman Journal reporting.
On April 29, 2024, the Oregon Lottery revealed Cheng Saephan, his wife, Duanpen Saephan, and their friend Laiza Chao of Milwaukie, Oregon, as the winners of the $1.30 billion Powerball jackpot, with the prize split three ways. The trio contacted Oregon Lottery officials the Monday after the (Saturday) April 6, 2024, Powerball drawing, and after the vetting process ended, their press conference was held later that month. Final ticket sales had pushed the $1.30 billion Powerball prize to a whopping $1.326 billion, one of the largest lottery prizes in U.S. history.
The Saephans and Chao chose the cash option of $422 million after taxes — 8% state and 24% federal taxes withheld, a press release from the Oregon Lottery states.
Below is what to know about billion-dollar lottery winner Cheng Saephan and how he spent his Powerball prize money.
Who is Cheng Saephan, $1.3 billion Powerball winner?
Time was something Cheng Saephan did not want to waste: The Iu-Mien immigrant from Laos was undergoing chemotherapy when he won the $1.326 billion Powerball jackpot from April 6, 2024.
During the Oregon Lottery press conference, Cheng Saephan shared photos of his chemo treatments and hospital stays. He told news media that he had “been battling with cancer for 8 years now … so I’ve been thinking, how am I going to have time to spend all this money?”
Cheng Saephan, who was 46 at the time of his historic win, said he was born in Laos, moved to Thailand in 1987 and came to the United States in 1994. He graduated from high school in 1996 and eventually worked as a Computer Numerical Control machinist before going on disability in 2016 after being diagnosed with cancer. He lived in Portland, Oregon, for 30 years.
Who sold winning $1.326 billion Powerball lottery ticket in Portland, Oregon?
Plaid Pantry, 6060 N.E. Columbia Blvd., Portland, Oregon, sold the winning Powerball quick pick ticket worth $1.326 billion. The convenience store earned a $100,000 commission and bragging rights for being one of the 14 lottery retailer locations that sold a winning billion-dollar Powerball or Mega Millions ticket.
“Now I have been blessed with this prize,” $1.326 billion Powerball winner Cheng “Charlie” Saephan said at the April 29, 2024, news conference with the Oregon Lottery. “I am going to be able to provide for my family and my health. I prayed for blessing, and my prayers were answered.”
How did Cheng Saephan spend his share of the $1.326 billion Powerball prize money?
Because of his health issues, Cheng Saephan, his wife Duanpen Saephan and their friend Laiza Chao opted for the one-time lump sum from the $1.326 billion Powerball drawing on April 6, 2024.
At a news conference with the Oregon Lottery, Cheng Saephan, who was the only winner to appear on camera and grant interviews, told reporters his first big purchase would be his dream home.
“I prayed to God to help me,” the Oregon Lottery winner said, according to the state lottery‘s press release. “My kids are young and I’m not that healthy.” Cheng Saephan added that the $1.326 billion Powerball prize would allow him and his family, consisting of his wife and two children, to live “worry free” in light of his illness.
A year after his epic win, which was the largest lottery prize for the Beaver State, the Oregon Lottery followed up with their record-setting Powerball winner. The state’s lottery site reported: “Other than a guys’ trip to Vegas, he has chosen to stay in the Portland area and has undergone two surgeries, not allowing for much jet setting.”
In addition, “Saephan used some of his good fortune to buy a new home for his family and made a fun purchase for himself – a metallic, neon Lamborghini. The color and style is so rare, he had to purchase the sports car from a dealer in Canada.”
The news release also mentioned his help with the community, purchasing “east side apartments as an investment property” and financially investing “in a growing, local Thai restaurant group.”
“I don’t worry about money now,” he told the Oregon Lottery. “I’ve got my family set up.”
What happened to Cheng Saephan, $1.3 billion Powerball winner from Portland, Oregon?
More than a year after the April 2024 $1.3 billion Powerball drawing, lottery winner Cheng Saephan talked about his windfall with CBS News. According to a September 2025 “CBS Saturday Morning” video interview with Dave Malkoff, the metallic, shiny green-yellow Lamborghini was for his 10-year-old son. He also had aspirations of opening a dance club and showed off his home karaoke bar with giant flatscreen TV, numerous speakers and sound system.
A short time after the Oregon Lottery Powerball winner reveal, CBS News reported, the cancer had spread, and doctors told Cheng Saephan he only had four months to live.
In the CBS News interview, he told “CBS Saturday Morning” reporter Dave Malkoff, “I would like to stay longer and see my two children grow up.”
On Jan. 17, 2026, less than two years after his historic $1.326 billion Powerball win, Cheng “Charlie” Saephan died and was later buried at Riverview Cemetery in Portland, Oregon. The USA TODAY Network confirmed with Riverview Cemetery that a funeral service for Cheng Saephan was held in January 2026.
Cheng Saephan, his wife Duanpen Saephan and their friend Laiza Chao remain the largest lottery winners in Oregon history and are part of a small group of the biggest lottery winners in U.S. history.
As of July 21, 2026, there have been 14 billion-dollar Powerball and Mega Millions lottery jackpots, with the $1.326 billion Powerball prize ranked No. 10.
Contributing: Capi Lynn, Bill Poehler and Abigail Dollins, Salem Statesman Journal
Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Subscribe to the free Florida TODAY newsletter.
This content is sourced from www.floridatoday.com and is shared for informational purposes only.
