$157 million jackpot to Washington family

Drawing Date: 3/8/2016

March 24, 2016 - On Thursday, March 24, Washington resident Michael Burkett stepped forward as the winner of the $157 million Mega Millions jackpot. The jackpot had remained unclaimed since the drawing on Tuesday, March 8. Burkett presented the ticket at Washington’s Lottery headquarters in Olympia, together with his family.

The winner purchased one $5 Mega Millions ticket at a Seattle-area 7-Eleven (9200 35th Ave, SW Seattle WA 98126) using Quick Pick. He chose the one-time cash payment option before taxes of $102.8 million.

After the reality of winning settled in, the winner’s first purchase was an Alienware PC from Dell. The man, who is a fan of electric vehicles, also shared that he has his eye on a new red Tesla.

In addition to the jackpot, Washington also had 36,231 smaller prize winners from the March 8 Mega Millions drawing. These prizes ranged from $1 - $5,000.