Desiree Fortini-Craft is the third $25 million grand prize winner in the Massachusetts State Lottery’s Billion Dollar Extravaganza game. (Massachusetts State Lottery)
Boston
Lottery officials in Massachusetts say a woman recently became their third grand prize winner while playing the Billion Dollar Extravaganza game.
According to the Massachusetts State Lottery, Desiree Fortini-Craft won the $25 million jackpot after purchasing a $50 winning ticket at Baker Street Market in the West Roxbury neighborhood.
She said she had scratched the winning ticket a few weeks ago and stored it in a secure spot before she went on a trip to Aruba and visited lottery headquarters to officially claim her prize money.
Fortini-Craft opted to receive her winnings in the form of a one-time payment of $16.2 million.
The Hyde Park resident said she plans to use her winnings to pay off the student loans of her three daughters, make some other big family purchases and buy a new car.
The Baker Street Market will also receive a $50,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.
This is the second lottery jackpot Fortini-Craft has won in Massachusetts, having previously won a $1 million prize in 2006.
The $25 million prize is the largest instant prize ever offered by the Massachusetts Lottery. All three $25 million prizes have now been claimed in the Billion Dollar Extravaganza $50 instant game, but other prizes are still up for grabs.