A Maine man who won the $1.35 billion Mega Millions wants his daughter's mother to pay up.
The man, whose name has been undisclosed to national outlets, alleges that his daugther's mother violated a non-disclosure agreement by telling his family that he scored big with the Mega Millions in January.
While at Hometown Gas & Grill in Lebanon on Jan. 13, the man purchased the jackpot-winning ticket, which earned him $723,564,144 before taxes. The mother of the man's daughter, known as Sara Smith, was informed about the win, although court documents show that she allegedly signed an NDA to keep it a secret until June 2032, when their daughter turns 18.
The lawsuit, filed last Tuesday, alleged that the woman shared the win during “one or more telephone communications” to the man's father and stepmother in September, according to the New York Daily News. Per the New York Post, the man's sister was also allegedly made privy to the unexpected gain.
Now, the man wants his Mega Millions and then some, asking for the names of those who were told despite being "unauthorized" in addition to compensatory damages "to be determined at trial, but no less than $100,000 per unauthorized disclosure."
"As a result of Defendant's unauthorized disclosures, John Doe has suffered irreparable injury, and there is immediate and imminent danger that John Doe will continue to suffer irreparable injury for which there is no adequate remedy at law," reads the suit.
On Feb. 22, nearly six weeks after the historic drawing, the fourth-biggest of all time, the Maine Lottery Association announced the win, per The Boston Globe. Staying mum on his decisions for the jackpot, a rep for the lottery winner said the man, who's wisely keeping his identity a secret, "is thoughtfully considering the best uses of the life-changing prize."
It's reasonable to say the man is having less of a lucky streak than Jennifer Minton, a Virginia woman who won $50,000, then $912,936, from the Virginia Lottery’s Safari Quest online game in the span of a week.
