In Florida, knowing the names and identities of Powerball and Mega Million winners is a public record.
Valentine’s Day is the most romantic holiday of the year. And it’s the anniversary of Edwin Castro, the sole winner of the $2.04 billion Powerball Lottery.
The Powerball winner recently lost one of his multi-million dollar homes to a California wildfire, but he has paid at least two people in lottery prize money.
It all goes back to his record-breaking victory in November 2022. Edwin Castro’s lottery tickets, along with all five numbers, won $2.04 billion, the largest lottery jackpot in US history. He publicly claimed on February 14, 2023 on California Lottery Headquarters, or on Valentine’s Day 2023.
Soon afterwards, Castro bought a beachfront home in Malibu for $3.8 million. It is one of three properties in Altadena, California. Satellite images from the Palisades Wildfire show that Castro’s Malibu home has been completely destroyed, according to news reports from the LA Times, CNN, TMZ and The New York Post.
Here’s what we know about the winner of the biggest lottery jackpot in the history of the US, his home in California, and how he spent some of his Powerball prizes:
Who is Edwin Castro? Who won the $2.04 billion Powerball draw?
Edwin Castro of Atadena, California was the sole winner of the $2.04 billion Powerball on November 7, 2022, and chose the exactly $1 billion lump sum, according to the California lottery. Castro purchased a ticket that matches the Powerball, along with all five numbers, from Joe’s service center in Altadena, California.
He won the award on February 14th, February 14th, 2023 – Valentine’s Day – and received a check from the California lottery at a press conference for $997.6 million. In California, it is a public record to know who wins the Powerball, Mega Millions, or California lottery jackpot and the tickets won have been sold. The rules differ in other states, such as Florida. In Florida, knowing who won the lottery jackpot is a public record, but that state winner can request the grand prize through a trust or LLC.
After taxes, Castro likely walked away at $628.5 million, USA Today reported.
What did California’s winner of Edwin Castro’s $2.04 billion Powerball Lottery do with his prize money?
After his epic $2.04 billion Powerball lottery won, Edwin Castro splashed out for himself and his parents. Since November 2022, news reports have shown that Castro has bought a multi-million dollar home in California for as many as $200 million a few weeks after publicly requesting the award from the California lottery.
On March 1, 2023, Castro purchased a $25.5 million property in Hollywood Hills, California. According to USA Today, the 13,500-square-foot mansion, known as “Palazzo di Vista,” is located on a 0.58-acre lot, with five bedrooms, seven bathrooms, game rooms, wine cellars, cinemas, bars and spas. Featuring and fitness studios. The main room is on the 3rd floor and has its own balcony. Other amenities include a garage large enough to park seven cars. Most homes with outdoor infinity pools and fireplaces are made up of glass walls.
Later, according to the New York Post, on March 9, 2023, Castro bought a second home in Altadena, a $4 million mansion with views of the San Gabriel Mountains. Characteristics of the Japanese-style home in 1953 include a pool, a cinema, five bedrooms and four bathrooms, the New York Post reported. Castro reportedly lived in a one-bedroom home when he won the Powerball. The New York Post said Castro also bought a vintage white Porsche for $250,000.
Edwin Castro, the winner of the Malibu home $2.04 billion Powerball lottery, was destroyed by a wildfire in Palisade. Has Edwin Castro lost his home to a California wildfire?
According to the LA Times, Castro bought a $3.85 million beachfront home in Malibu, California in September 2023. This is a two-bedroom home with ocean views just off the Pacific Coast Highway. The LA Times announced on January 13, 2025 that “Castro is the same two men listed in the LLC that the business manager listed in public records used to purchase the other two properties. “I bought the house using an LLC, a man of the company.”
Terry Fern of Citrick & Company, a California company that claims to represent Castro, told the USA Today Network in October 2024 that Castro owns a Hollywood Hills home and an Altadena home. The California Property Tax Records check does not list Castro as the owner of the home tied to his name, but the Property Tax Records cite privacy restrictions.
The Malibu home was one of many victims of Palisade, California, and was one of the wildfires that burned almost 24,000 acres in January 2025. The Cal Fire site provides containment updates, incident maps, maps that can be searched by address, and satellite images.
Cal Fire, the Forestry Fire Protection Agency, indicates that Castro’s home in California had been ordered to evacuate from the Palisard and Eton wildfires. However, the Hollywood Hills and the Altadena homes were not incurred as of January 15, 2025.
Fern also said Castro had not had a news interview.
Edwin Castro, who will win the $2.04 billion Powerball Lottery?
Two years ago, the world learned that Edwin Castro had become a millionaire overnight (almost); He won a life-changing lottery in November 2022, but on February 14th, 2023, the news was released, aka Valentine’s Day. Who is Edwin Castro? He holds the record for winning the biggest jackpot in US history. A resident of Altadena, California, became a billionaire overnight – he missed the billionaire title for under $3 million – lottery tickets on November 7, 2022 It coincided with the Powerball and matched the $1.9 record drawing of the time. Billion Awards. The final ticket sales totaled $2.04 billion.
Castro refused to appear publicly when he requested the grand prize two months after the painting. In California, the identity of lottery winners is a public record.
In addition to his gorgeous splurge, Castro has a 24-hour security team.
What are the numbers that won the $2.04 billion Powerball Jackpot?
After several months of rollovers, on November 7, 2022, the Powerball swelled to a whopping $2.04 billion. The jackpot was before the estimated $1.9 billion in the drawings, but lottery ticket sales were pushed to over $2 billion after the updated calculation. The illustrations have been rolled over 40 times since August 3, 2022. Edwin Castro finally won the lottery with these wins: 10-33-41-47-56, Powerball was 10.
Who won the $2.04 billion Powerball ticket in California?
Although the drawing of the $2.04 billion Powerball was delayed, it didn’t take long for the California lottery system to announce the service center of Joe, a mobile gas station in Altadena, California, near Los Angeles. The lottery retailer’s identity was released the day after the painting.
At a press conference, owner Joe Chaheid Jr. said he wanted to share the money with his 11 grandchildren. Chaheid and his son, Joe Chaheid Jr., took photos outside Joe’s service centre. Retailers usually get small amounts of grand prizes, but bonus awards also increased as lottery ticket sales pushed Powerball jackpots well over $2 billion. The California lottery awarded Cha Hai a $1 million bonus for selling victory tickets.
“We would like to thank all the community members who are always coming, dedicated to this station,” Chahide said at a press conference on November 9, 2022. “They really believe in good fortune and they really believe that some things are just worth it.”
Since the historic lottery won, Joe’s service center in California has also had a celebrity flavour. According to a news report, people touched Joe’s Service Center window sign for good luck.
In addition to the grand prize, 22 tickets worth $1 million except for 16 state Powerball matched all five numbers except for 16 state Powerball, Powerball officials said.
Contributions: Doc Loulallen, N’Dea Yancey-Bragg, Orlando Mayorquin, Mike Snider, Thao Nguyen, Claire Thornton, Jordan Mendoza, USA Today; Nate Schute, Austin American nation
Sangalang is the lead digital producer of USA Today Network-Florida. Follow her on @byjensangalang on Twitter or Instagram. Supports local journalism. Consider signing up for a Florida newspaper.
