Footage shows ‘clear’ winner of $2 billion Powerball ticket amid legal battle, lawyer claims
New footage of Edwin Castro allegedly shows him purchasing the winning Powerball ticket after he was accused of stealing it.
Castro won a whopping $2.1 billion in November 2022 and went on to pick the option of taking a lump sum of $997.6 million before taxes, marking the biggest lottery win in American history.
He's since purchased a series of luxury items - including a $25.5 million estate in Hollywood Hills and a vintage white Porsche for $250,000.
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But earlier this year, Castro was hit with allegations that he wasn't the one to purchase the winning ticket.
A man called Jose Rivera alleged that it was in fact his ticket and that it somehow ended up in Castro's hands.
Rivera claimed that he bought the ticket, but then had it stolen from him by a man who goes by 'Reggie', who was later identified as his landlord, Urachi F. Romero.
He said he tried to get his ticket back but was told that Romero had lost it, though would split the winnings with him if the ticket turned out to be good.
At the time of his complaint, Rivera said the security footage at the store where the lottery ticket was bought will prove he's the one who actually paid for it in the first place - and now said footage has been seen.
According to Castro's lawyer, David De Paoli, the footage shows Castro as the 'clear' winner of the ticket that was purchased at Joe’s Service Center in Altadena, California.
While the video hasn't been publicly released, Paoli says he's viewed it for himself.
“I have personally viewed the CCTV footage and it is crystal clear," told the The US Sun in a statement.
"Edwin Castro purchased the winning Powerball ticket without question.”
According to the publication, Rivera has now been charged with filing a false police report.
He's set to appear in court on December 1.
Pasadena Police Department has said of the case: "Defendant Jose Rivera Campos (aka Jose Campos Rivera) was charged with a violation of Penal Code, section 148.5(a) (filing a false crime report) in case 3PD01873."
With Rivera's case now pending, California Lottery Commission said that it cannot comment on the matter - but did say that that it 'remains confident that Edwin Castro is the rightful winner of the $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot from last November'.
UNILAD has contacted Pasadena Police Department for further comment.
Niamh Shackleton