Powerball winner Edwin Castro ‘disappeared’ after record-breaking jackpot, treated pals to luxury Fiji vacation

Powerball winner Edwin Castro “vanished” from social media after hitting the $2.04 billion jackpot and took his friends on a luxury trip to Fiji to celebrate before his name was made public.

The Los Angeles resident, 31, drew the numbers for the largest US jackpot of all time on Nov. 8, 2022 but the public didn’t know his identity until California Lottery officials made an announcement in February, in accordance with the state’s lottery laws.

Friends say immediately after winning, Castro kept his newfound wealth — amounting to $997.6 million after he chose the lump sum payment option — largely secret.

“I noticed he did disappear for a couple of months from his social media after he won, which is smart,” a source told The Post.

Castro enjoyed his last few weeks of anonymity by treating some of his close friends to a trip to Fiji before his name was made public.

In photos seen by The Post, a smiling Castro is holding a huge fish he had caught on one excursion.

“Thought I might post my trip to Fiji, might delete later,” the billionaire joked in his photo caption on Jan. 20.

Responding to a friend’s comment underneath, he wrote: “Get in my belly that’s what I told the sashimi.”

Another picture shows Castro and his friends in swim shorts posing on the exclusive Cloud 9 bar, billed as ‘Fiji’s floating paradise”.

The bar is a two-level floating oasis with drinks, snorkeling and a on-board pizzeria. It is only accessible by boat and lies around an hour out of Port Denarau on the island’s mainland.

Cloud 9 lists itself as: “A renowned hub for artisans, underground musicians, lovers, dreamers and pleasure seekers from across the globe,” on its website, adding it is “more than just a floating bar; it’s a vibe.”

It also says the bar was featured on reality show “Survivor”.

Once back from his trip, Castro started to get serious. Sources said another of the first moves he made was to hire bodyguards for him and his family, who at that time still lived in their three-bedroom family home near the La Crescenta, Calif. suburb where he grew up.

Since then, Castro, a qualified architect, and his brother Jesse, who is a banker, have been working together to manage his huge windfall.

Once Castro’s name became public, spam messages from scammers quickly started on social media and targeted Castro’s friends and family.

“I do remember getting spam messages from someone claiming to be him and saying he was giving away money,” said a source.  

“You are blessed, I’m EDWIN CASTRO from California, the Powerball jackpot winner,” said one of the scam messages seen by The Post. “I have spread most of my wealth over a number of charities and organizations. I have voluntarily decided to donate the sum of $200,000 to you as one of the selected 300 people.”

Castro was also slapped with a lawsuit filed by a man who claimed to be the rightful owner of the winning ticket.

In his complaint, Jose Rivera claimed he was the one who bought the ticket which was then allegedly stolen by his former landlord, Urachi “Reggie” Romero.

Romero, 47, told The Post he believed his former roommate was the person who purchased the ticket from Joe’s Service Center in Altadena, Calif.

While it is still unclear how the ticket then made its way into Castro’s possession, Rivera appeared in court last week and doubled down on his claims— despite being charged with filing a false police report last month in relation to the ticket.

He faces up to six months in jail, probation and fines of up to $1,000 for allegedly filing a false police report if he is found guilty.

A trial date has yet to be set in the lawsuit, but the California lottery commission has said it is confident Castro is the rightful winner of the prize and say he passed a rigorous series of tests to ensure he is the rightful winner.

Since his huge win, Castro has been seen driving vintage sports cars and has made some large real estate purcahses, including a $25 million mansion in the Hollywood Hills and a $47 million Bel Air estate.

He also bought his parents a $4 million home in Altadena which features Japanese-inspired design.

“He’s very grounded in what he does,” a source close to Castro told The Post. “Whatever he spends, he knows that he’s gonna make a profit on it.”