{"id":104750,"date":"2026-01-18T08:02:36","date_gmt":"2026-01-18T08:02:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/18\/gossip-surrounds-missing-arkansas-powerball-winner\/"},"modified":"2026-01-18T08:02:36","modified_gmt":"2026-01-18T08:02:36","slug":"gossip-surrounds-missing-arkansas-powerball-winner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/18\/gossip-surrounds-missing-arkansas-powerball-winner\/","title":{"rendered":"Gossip Surrounds Missing Arkansas Powerball Winner"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"post-content__sub-title\">\n        Posted on: January 17, 2026, 03:29h.\u00a0\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"post-content__sub-title\">\n        Last updated on: January 17, 2026, 03:29h.\n    <\/p>\n<div class=\"post-info-panel\">\n<div class=\"post-info-panel__author-holder js-open-close\">\n<div class=\"post-info-panel__author-logo\">\n                <img alt=\"Avatar photo\" src=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-4-1-50x50.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-4-1-100x100.png 2x\" class=\"avatar avatar-50 photo\" height=\"50\" width=\"50\" decoding=\"async\"\/>            <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>The Powerball ticket worth $1.817 billion, sold in Arkansas, remains at large<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>The Arkansas Lottery says the ticket must be redeemed by June 22, 2026<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr\/>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Gossip is running rampant across Arkansas regarding who is the lucky winner of the Christmas Eve Powerball jackpot worth $1.817 billion.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_373591\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-373591\" data-style=\"width: 858px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-post-thumbnail-858xAUTO wp-image-373591\" src=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/shutterstock_2518458069-858x572.jpg\" alt=\"Powerball jackpot Arkansas winner\" width=\"858\" height=\"572\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/shutterstock_2518458069-858x572.jpg 858w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/shutterstock_2518458069-430x287.jpg 430w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/shutterstock_2518458069-302x200.jpg 302w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/shutterstock_2518458069-238x158.jpg 238w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/shutterstock_2518458069-194x128.jpg 194w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/shutterstock_2518458069.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 858px) 100vw, 858px\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-373591\" class=\"text-description\">The Powerball jackpot struck in Cabot on Christmas Eve. Nearly a month later, the $1.817 billion ticket has not yet been redeemed with the Arkansas Lottery. (Image: Shutterstock)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">It\u2019s been nearly a month since a ticket sold at the Murphy USA gas station in Cabot next to the Walmart Supercenter matched the Dec. 24 Powerball numbers of 4, 25, 31, 52, 59, and the red Powerball 19. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/has-the-1-8-billion-powerball-winner-in-arkansas-come-forward\/\">winner<\/a> of the life-changing windfall has the choice of receiving the full jackpot paid out over 29 years or a one-time cash option of $834.9 million. Both are before federal and state taxes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Major lottery winners typically consult with an attorney and\/or financial advisor before coming forward. But as the clock ticks, rumors about what\u2019s going on grow louder.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"main-blockquote\">\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">If I go into a local grocery store, if I go anywhere in town, someone asks me about it,\u201d Arkansas House Speaker Brian Evans (R-Cabot) told the <a href=\"https:\/\/arkansasadvocate.com\/2025\/12\/31\/1-8-billion-powerball-winner-a-mystery-and-could-remain-one-for-years-thanks-to-arkansas-law\/\"><i>Arkansas Advocate<\/i><\/a>. \u201cTypically, it\u2019s, \u2018Hey Brian, were you the winner?&#8217;\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Evans is not the winner, he says. Being an elected official, Evans would not be afforded the state\u2019s three-year anonymity privilege.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Lottery Gossip<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Arkansas allows a Powerball ticket to be redeemed within 180 days of the draw. That means the Christmas Eve Powerball ticket must be redeemed by June 22, 2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">With Cabot centrally located and the ticket purchased at a gas station just off Interstate 57, which nearly runs the length of the state from Missouri to Texas, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/arkansas-lottery-finally-addresses-1-817-billion-powerball-winner\/\">winner could truly be anyone<\/a>. It could be an Arkansas resident, or someone passing through who decided to grab a Powerball play.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Neighbors are looking across the street, wondering if they\u2019re the ones poised to become massively rich. Colleagues are inquiring at the water cooler if their coworker is readying to quit and cash in the Powerball ticket.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong><span class=\"s1\">But as each day passes, more speculation arises that the winning paper ticket might be lost or accidentally trashed. The ticket won\u2019t be redeemed until at least Tuesday, Jan. 21, as the Arkansas Lottery\u2019s Claim Centers are closed on the weekends and on Monday, Jan. 20, in observation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The winner, in addition to choosing between the annuity or lump sum, must also decide whether they will remain anonymous for three years. After three years, Arkansas requires lottery winners to become part of the public record.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">The $1.817 billion Powerball jackpot is the second-largest lottery prize in US history behind the $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot won in November 2022.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Is Tonight Your Turn?<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Time will tell if the Christmas Eve Powerball drawing indeed changed someone\u2019s life. Tonight is another opportunity, though the jackpot is a considerably smaller prize.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Powerball has grown from the Christmas Eve hit to an estimated jackpot of $179 million for tonight\u2019s draw. The lump sum option is at $81.5 million.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Mega Millions currently has a larger jackpot at $250 million ($113.5 million cash). Mega Millions is next drawn on Tuesday, Jan. 20.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/gossip-surrounds-missing-arkansas-powerball-winner\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Posted on: January 17, 2026, 03:29h.\u00a0 Last updated on: January 17, 2026, 03:29h. The Powerball ticket worth $1.817 billion, sold in Arkansas, remains at large<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":104751,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[158],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-104750","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gambling"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104750","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=104750"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104750\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/104751"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=104750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=104750"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=104750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}