Powerball $1.08B jackpot winner Yanira Alvarez revealed after 8 months in California

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By Nicholas McEntyre

They don’t call it the Golden State for nothing.

For the second time this month, a billion-dollar Powerball winner has been revealed in California, as the current lottery jackpot inches closer to the coveted 10-digit value.

Yanira Alvarez purchased the winning ticket for the $1.08 billion Powerball jackpot at the Las Palmitas Mini Market in Los Angeles for the July 19, 2023 drawing.

Alvarez’s winning numbers were 7, 10, 11, 13, 24 and the red Powerball was 24.

His monster win last July ended a 39-draw Powerball jackpot and was the first of two consecutive billion-dollar winning tickets sold in California, the state lottery announced, referring to the historic victory of Theodorus “Theo” Struyck.

California state law requires that jackpot winners be named and their location.

Alvarez declined to comment publicly with the announcement.

Before Alvarez’s identity was revealed, the owners of the Las Palmitas mini-market believed the winner was an elderly woman who lived near the store.

“A Hispanic lady, an old lady,” the store manager’s daughter-in-law, Angelica Menjivar, told the Post. “100% a Latina lady.”

The modest store is located in the Fashion District of downtown Los Angeles, owned by Maria Menjiva and her family since 2017.

Alvarez, whose age was not immediately known, had the option of taking the $1.08 billion, which paid more than 30 annual payments, or as a one-time cash value.

She opted for the one-time payment worth $558.1 before federal taxes.

“We can’t thank our players enough for their support of California’s public schools,” said California Lottery Director Harjinder K. Shergill Chima. “Our mission is what drives us every day, and while jackpots are life-changing for big winners, they also make an important difference in the lives of students and teachers in classrooms across the state. »

His victory was the third largest prize in the history of the game at the time of the drawing.

The $1.08 billion prize now ranks fourth on the record list after Struyck hit the jackpot in October with his $1.765 billion payday, according to Powerball.

On March 15, Struyck was announced as the representative to win after the ticket was sold at Midway Market & Liquor in Frazier Park, California.

The two stores are approximately 81 miles apart.

The California Lottery uses profits generated from the drawing to raise funds for the state’s public schools.

“Last year’s giant jackpot streaks generated an estimated $197.9 million in additional funding for schools. »

Both victories still trail fellow countryman Edwin Castro’s historic $2.04 billion victory in November 2022.

Golden State has won at least a share of the four largest Powerball jackpots in lottery history.

In 2016, three tickets, one each in California, Florida and Texas, all matched all six numbers to win a $1.586 billion prize, the first at the time to exceed $1 billion.

The Powerball grand prize is estimated at $935 million, with a cash value of $452.5 million.

The next drawing will take place Saturday evening at 11 p.m.