24-year-old wins 768 million dollars in the lottery

Manuel Franco has won one of the highest jackpots in US lottery history.
He opted for a one-time payout instead of installments – and thus accepts deductions. After taxes, he has 326 million dollars left.

A 24-year-old lucky man from Wisconsin has cracked a US jackpot filled with 768 million dollars. Manuel Franco said at a press conference on Tuesday that he already felt “such a feeling of happiness” on the day he bought his lottery tickets. After drawing his numbers on 27 March, he looked through his ten-dollar betting slips and thought he had checked them all thoroughly.

But then he discovered one last note stuck to another. When he compared the first two numbers on it with the drawing of the “Powerball” lottery, his feelings overpowered him. “I went crazy,” says Franco. “I looked at the other three numbers – they all matched. My heart started racing, my blood started pounding, I was warm. I started screaming.” According to American media reports, Franco quit his job. He didn’t say much more private.

Under the current US system, Franco could choose between two payout options: a payout in installments over 29 years or a one-time payout of $477 million. He opted for the latter and thus accepts considerable deductions. The state of Wisconsin retains 36.4 million dollars in taxes, the federal government 114.6 million dollars, which leaves Franco with 326 million dollars. There are also 100,000 dollars for a gas station in the suburb of New Berlin, where Franco bought his lottery ticket at the end of March.

The press conference with the winner was organized by the Wisconsin lottery company because according to US state law, lottery winners cannot remain anonymous there. Franco said he became paranoid as soon as he became aware of his winnings. He thought the whole world was after him. “It’s hard to live your life when you have the lot that everyone wants.”

Immediately after the press conference, two members of Wisconsin’s parliament introduced a law to give lottery winners anonymity.