CA Lottery is confident they have the right winner amid lawsuit of a stolen ticket claim
The California Lottery says they are confident that Edwin Castro is the rightful winner of the $2.04 billion prize stemming from the Powerball drawing in November 2022.
This assertion comes amid a lawsuit filed by a California man who claims the winning ticket was stolen from him by a man named "Reggie."
Jose Rivera argues that he bought the lottery ticket from Joe's Service Center in Altadena on Nov. 7, the day before the historic drawing. He says the winning ticket was stolen from him and he reported the theft to the police and to the California State Lottery, demanding an investigation before the prize was handed out.
Attorneys for Rivera released the full name of "Reggie," a codefendant in the suit, to be Urachi F. Romero. According to the suit, Rivera asked Romero numerous times to return the ticket, but he refused, telling the plaintiff among other things that the two could split the winnings if he found the ticket,
Edwin Castro is the man who came forward with the winning $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot ticket on Feb. 14.
The California Lottery said this is a matter for law enforcement to work out, not them. "Such allegations are subject to investigation only by local law enforcement. Should a local law enforcement agency investigate such allegations, Lottery's only role is to assist in the matter by answering questions and/or providing evidence as allowed under the law," wrote the California Lottery in an official release.
"Further, when it comes to the vetting process for big winners, California Lottery has the utmost confidence in its process for doing so. California Lottery remains confident that Edwin Castro is the rightful winner of the $2.04 billion prize stemming from the Powerball drawing in November of 2022."
