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$36 million Mega Millions ticket sold at Florida grocery store goes unclaimed

Winnings forfeited, but 80% of unclaimed prize funds going to worthy cause
Florida Mega Millions tickets on display, Aug. 7, 2023
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(CNN) — A missed deadline last weekend means someone in Florida lost out on $36 million.

No one stepped up to claim the prize from the August drawing before the deadline, rendering the Mega Millions lottery ticket void.

As a result, the winner has forfeited the winnings — the ticket is now only worth the paper it was printed on, Michelle Griner, a spokesperson with the Florida Lottery, told CNN.

The deadline to claim the prize was Sunday, marking the end of the 180-day claim period. The winning ticket was purchased at a Publix in Jacksonville with the winning numbers: 18-39-42-57-63. The Mega Ball number was 7 with a multiplier of 3x.

This was the only unclaimed Mega Millions jackpot ticket in 2023, according to the Mega Millions website.

While most unclaimed prizes are small — a few dollars — million-dollar rewards have gone unclaimed.

A $26 million prize in California went unclaimed in 2021 after a woman mistakenly washed the ticket with her laundry. And in 2011, a Powerball ticket for $77 million went unclaimed in Georgia.

But there is some good news in all this — the funds from this unclaimed ticket are going to a worthy cause.

Florida law requires that 80% of the unclaimed prize funds be transferred to a trust fund for education, with the remainder being held for the prize pool, according the state lottery.

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