1st winning Mega Millions lottery ticket sold in Minnesota

ROSEVILLE, Minn. (AP) — Lottery officials say the first people to buy a winning Mega Millions ticket in Minnesota quietly redeemed their prize on Tuesday, opting to take the cash option and to remain anonymous. They will collect $66.9 million before taxes.

The $110 million ticket for the April 12 drawing was sold at a Holiday gas station in Ramsey. Lottery officials could not say if the winners were from Minnesota, but were told the couple has been playing the lottery since their first date more than 30 years ago.

A new state law allows winners of prizes of $10,000 or more to keep their names a secret.

Erika Helvick Anderson, the state lottery’s director of public affairs, said the couple plan to retire in the summer and use the money to possibly buy a new house and cars and travel. They also told lottery officials it was OK to release a few details about them, but not their names, the Star Tribune reported.

"They always liked hearing stories about previous winners, so they wanted to share a little bit about them while still remaining anonymous," Helvick Anderson said. "They are still wrapping their head around this."

Mega Millions has been played in Minnesota since 2010. It is the fifth largest jackpot in state lottery history. The biggest prize won in the state was a $228.9 million Powerball jackpot in 2011.