Powerball winner Edwin Castro claims his father was wrongly served with a bombshell lawsuit

Powerball winner Edwin Castro is trying to get a lawyer to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a man who claims his $2 billion lottery ticket was stolen and that the thief tried to blackmail him in exchange for returning it.

Castro’s lawyers also say the subpoena related to the lawsuit against Jose Rivera was inadvertently forwarded to the millionaire’s father. Both Castro and Rivera say they purchased the winning ticket from Joe’s Service Center in Altadena, California.

Edwin H. Castro Sr. said in an affidavit that a defense attorney came to his home in Altadena on April 25 to present the subpoena and lawsuit. The Powerball winner has the same name as his father but has a different initial in the middle.

“I told trial counsel that he was serving the wrong Edwin Castro, but he showed little concern,” says the elder Castro. The Powerball winner says he never received a subpoena.

Castro’s lawyers say there are no details in the legal documents as to how the ticket came into his possession. On this basis, Castro’s lawyers are asking a judge to dismiss the lawsuit.

Edwin Castro is facing a lawsuit alleging his $2 billion Powerball lottery ticket was stolen

Joe’s Service Center in Altadena, California where the ticket was purchased in November 2022

Castro was seen exiting a bank in a vintage Porsche and buying two homes in California for $29 million after taking home nearly $1 billion after-tax from his lottery win

In the lawsuit, Rivera says he bought the ticket on November 8, the day before the drawing. The ticket was then stolen by a man named Reggie. Reggie’s real name is Urachi F. Romero.

Rivera doesn’t say exactly when Romero allegedly stole the ticket. On a legal standpoint, his attorneys say the accusers “fail to allege facts linking Edwin G. Castro to “Reggie.”

“There are no facts as to how Edwin Castro obtained ‘Reggie’s’ Powerball ticket,” the complaint continued.

Rivera says Romero repeatedly refused to return the ticket. Romero said he would split the prize with Rivera if he could find the ticket. He later told Rivera that the ticket was lost.

Shortly after Castro was announced as the winner on February 14, Rivera filed complaints with the California Lottery in Chatsworth and Santa Fe Springs. The Santa Fe office accepted his complaint.

He claims that, until the announcement of Castro’s victory, Romero threatened to destroy the ticket unless he agreed to split the prize equally.

His attorneys are demanding that all surveillance video from Joe’s Service Center be retained from the day the ticket was purchased.

The winning ticket – 10, 33, 41, 47, 56 and Powerball 10 – was sold at the Altadena store, which also featured a $1 million payout for the historic win.

Castro’s new $25 million California home, state lottery officials claim he is the rightful owner of the lottery ticket

Castro’s new $4 million home in Altadena, California has its own home theater and expensive artwork

Castro has been living big since his win, buying two separate mansions in California for a total of $29 million

The sprawling 13,578-square-foot hillside property features a fully equipped outdoor kitchen, gym, wine cellar and infinity pool

Rivera is seeking $2.04 billion, the jackpot amount, in his lawsuit.

Service center staff told DailyMail.com there was little evidence to support the claim that the ticket was stolen.

“The California Lottery has strict rules about how they choose a winner. This guy is crazy, he came here with his lawyer and yelled about it and there’s nothing we can do,” said one staffer.

The employee added that lottery officials received surveillance video and went through that frame by frame for the verified winner.

“When it comes to the verification process for big winners, the California Lottery has the utmost confidence in their process,” the California Lottery said in a statement to DailyMail.com.

“California Lottery remains confident that Edwin Castro is the legitimate winner of the $2.04 billion prize from the November 2022 Powerball drawing.”

At the time of the win, lottery director Alva Johnson said Castro wished to remain private and declined an invitation from lottery officials to attend the press conference.

In a prepared statement, Castro said, “As shocked and thrilled as I am to have won the Powerball drawing, the real winner is California’s public school system.”

California public schools benefit from the state lottery.

After months of anticipation, California Lottery Director Alva Johnson announced that Edwin Castro was the winner of November’s historic jackpot win. He opted for a $997.6 million lump sum payment option

Castro bought his two houses downstairs in his modest one-bedroom home in Altadena

This means the education system received over $156 million from the record-breaking victory.

After the win, Castro received the lump sum payment, which totaled $997.6 million after taxes.

Staff at the center that sold the winning ticket weren’t quite so private as they celebrated their $1 million win.

Joe Chahayed won $1 million selling record-breaking $2.04 billion Powerball ticket

Chahayed said at the time he would share the profits with his entire family.

Chahayed – the father-in-law of former NFL player Domata Peko – held up a giant check outside his gas station, along with his family, who wore a T-shirt that read “Millionaire Made Here.”

“We’re thrilled,” he said at a press conference with the California Lottery last November.

“I will share with my family, with whatever it takes, with my children, my grandchildren.” “I have 11 grandchildren and will share with them.”

His son, who attended the press conference, said: “No one else deserves it more than this man.”

Castro has been living big since his win, buying two separate mansions in California for a total of $29 million. He was also spotted driving away from a bank in a vintage Porsche.

One of his new homes is a $4 million mansion in the Los Angeles area. The home has its own home theater, private office, and expensive artworks, which are sure to be enhanced by Castro’s new, sizable bank balance.

The house in Altadena is a short drive from where Castro grew up.

When Castro is fed up with the $4 million property, he’s only about 20 miles from his second complex in California, which he bought for $25 million just eight days earlier.

The sprawling 13,578-square-foot hillside property features a fully equipped outdoor kitchen, gym, wine cellar and infinity pool.