California reveals the name of $1.2bn lottery winner

• Mystery winner of $1.2bn Mega Millions jackpot in California
• Rosemary Casarotti, the winner, refuses to participate in public events
• She opted for the lump sum payment fetching her $571m

The lucky soul behind the massive $1.2bn payout from the Mega Millions jackpot in California has been finally named. Rosemary Casarotti is the mystery winner who scooped the eye-watering jackpot on December 27 and claimed the fifth-largest prize in the history of the game.

Casarotti is claiming the bulk of the winnings in one go, scooping up $571m after paying all due taxes. She could have got a bigger sum still, but it would have been paid as an annuity over 29 years, which was not Casarotti’s choice in the end.

As to the woman herself, although the California Lottery was obligated to reveal her name, she was reluctant to take any part of the publicity surrounding her win. The lottery said that Casarotti had preferred to remain "as private as possible," considering.

The lottery said that it had held a phone call with the winner who has not offered much in the way of comment other than to say how grateful and happy she was to have been the person to grab the money and win.

Casarotti won with 3, 7, 37, 49, and 55, as well as a 6 for the Mega Ball. The winning ticket was bought from Sunshine Food and Gas Circle K location in Cottonwood, California, with the shop taking a small bonus payment for selling the ticket.

As to the California Lottery, the organization was able to raise $89.5m for public schools thanks to the game.

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