$2 billion lotto win tears family apart
A man who won one of the biggest lottery jackpots in American history has been accused of cutting his family out of their promised share after winning $2 billion (AUD) in the Mega Millions jackpot.
The unidentified man has been in a legal battle with his daughter’s mum since November, after he accused her of violating a nondisclosure agreement by telling the rest of the family about his fortune before their daughter's 18th birthday in 2032, according to the Independent.
He bought the winning ticket in Lebanon, Maine on January 13 2023.
The mum – identified by a pseudonym, Sara Smith – claimed that he was the one who told his family about his lotto winnings, not her.
The man's father supported Smith's claim and said that his son told him about the win and all the things he planned to do with his new-found fortune, which he collected through an LLC in a lump sum of over $750 million.
“February or March of 2023, my son came to my house … and informed me and my wife that he won a large amount of money in the Maine State Lottery,” his father wrote in new court documents.
“I understand that my son has stated that he told me nothing about his money ‘other than the simple fact that I had won’,” the dad wrote. “That is not true.”
He also claimed that he didn't ask his son for any money, but the lotto-winner allegedly made a bunch of promises, including building his dad a garage to fix up old cars, buying his childhood home, setting up a million-dollar trust fund and funding future medical expenses for his dad and stepmum.
The lotto-winner also allegedly demanded his father to not talk to Smith.
"I told him … ‘You are not the son I knew’,” his dad wrote in the filing.
“He got angry, calling me a ‘dictator’ and an ‘a**ehole’. I have not heard from my son since, and he has not done any of [the] things he promised.”
The half-billionaire refuted his dad and Smith's claims.
“I made the mistake of telling my father that I had won the lottery without having him sign a confidentiality agreement,” he wrote.
“Our relationship deteriorated quickly thereafter,” he continued.
“I did not tell him what I was doing with my money, how I was going to benefit my daughter, or any facts other than the simple fact that I had won.”
He also accused his ex-partner of trying to reveal his identity to the world and that she wrongly accused him of trying to kidnap their daughter after he refused to pay for her and her new boyfriend's vacation.
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