He won one of the biggest lotteries in U.S. history, but he's trying to keep his identity a secret. INSIDE EDITION reports the mystery surrounding the winner.
The sole winner of last month's huge jackpot is finally coming forward, but he insisted on hiding his face behind a giant check. All that was visible was his T-shirt, bearing the image of Yoda from Star Wars as a leprechaun and the words: "Luck of the Jedi I have."
On the check, his name: "B. Raymond Buxton."
The date he chose to come forward was April 1, but this is no April Fool's joke.
California Lottery spokesman Alex Traverso spoke to INSIDE EDITION's Megan Alexander. Alexander asked, "Why does he want to hide his identity."
Traverso replied, "It was really overwhelming for him. Not everyone can say they've won $425 million dollars. He took a lot of time to get himself used to the idea of coming in to collect his winnings."
So, who is the man behind the giant check?
B. Raymond Buxton lives in a house in an affluent town outside San Francisco. He's 55, but he's already retired. His wife, Cynthia, is 51. He worked in the electronics industry.
Now, here's where it gets really intriguing. Contrary to what you might expect from a techie living in Silicon Valley, Buxton has absolutely no social-media presence, no Facebook page, no Twitter account, and nothing on Instagram. That's prompting speculation that he's spent the last six weeks getting rid of all traces of himself online to preserve his anonymity.
Traverso said, "It sounds like he's really well-prepared to take on this fortune."
The mystery man said of his mega win, "Once the initial shock passed, I couldn't sleep for days. It's amazing how a little slip of paper can change your life."
He says he wants to set up a charitable foundation focusing on "pediatric health, child hunger and education."
