Sometimes the tea isn’t yours to spill. A man from Maine is suing his daughter’s mother for telling his family that he was a billion-dollar jackpot winner.
The man, who was not identified in the lawsuit, won the Mega Millions jackpot worth $1.35 billion in January. He selected the one-time cash payment that amounted to $723.56 million or about $404 million after taxes, Fox Business reported.
It was the fifth-largest payout in U.S. lottery history, The Associated Press reported.
The man, called “John Doe” in the lawsuit, was allowed to claim the winnings through a trust to keep his identity a secret.
But his daughter’s mother, identified as “Sara Smith” told his father and stepmother about the windfall, despite signing a non-disclosure agreement, the Portland Press Herald reported.
The pair signed the NDA on Feb. 8, a couple of weeks before he claimed the prize, with “Smith” promising not to tell anyone other than her significant other, daughter and their attorney, that “Doe” won the money, where he was and his other assets. She also agreed to not tell anyone how much “Doe” would give his daughter.
The agreement was created because of “the unique safety, security, and privacy concerns associated with winning the lottery,” and “to avoid the irreparable harm of allowing the media or the public in general to discover John Doe’s identity, physical location and assets,” the newspaper reported.
“Doe” said “Smith” broke the agreement during a September phone call with his father and stepmother and now claims that he “has suffered irreparable injury, and there is immediate and imminent danger” to him, according to the complaint.
He is now asking for temporary injunctive relief and at least $100,000 in damages.
Fox Business reported that he is also asking her to reveal who else she told and to pay for attorney fees and court costs.
The winning numbers for the Jan. 13 Mega Millions drawing were 30, 43, 45, 46 and 61 with the gold Mega Ball 14.
Lottery lawsuit by National Content Desk on Scribd
