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POWERBALL winner Edwin Castro has been pictured dining with a close friend of the Kardashians as he enjoys his newfound fame.
Castro, the highest Powerball winner of all time, was seen dining at an upscale restaurant in Beverly Hills, California.
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He was pictured greeting Jonathan Cheban, also known as Food God, outside a swanky Hollywood hotspot, the restaurant Novikov.
Cheban is an entrepreneur and former publicist.
He’s close with the Kardashian family and makes frequent appearances on their reality shows.
The pair were seen exiting Nokivov at the same time and talked to each other while waiting for the valet.
Read more on Edwin Castro
Cheban then left Nokivov and ventured to the Birds Street Cafe.
Castro rose to prominence after winning the whopping $2.04 billion Powerball ticket.
He’s been thrust into the spotlight ever since and has seen various trials and tribulations.
KARDASHIAN ALLY
Kardashian fans met Cheban on the family’s E! reality show Keeping Up With the Kardashians.
Kim also executive-produced his short-lived reality show, The Spin Crowd, which followed the employee of Cheban’s entertainment agency, Command PR.
The series premiered in 2010 but only lasted one season.
Kim and Cheban’s friendship dates back to the early 2000s when they met through Paris and Nicky Hilton.
They met at a birthday party for Brittny Gastineau, the daughter of former New York Jets player Mark Gastineau.
Cheban exclusively spoke to The U.S. Sun in April about his best friend Kim’s most embarrassing public moment.
He revealed that Kim was once forced on stage by Prince in 2011.
She joined the late pop star on stage at Madison Square Garden to dance with him.
However, her stage presence didn’t impress Prince and he quickly booted her back to her seat.
Cheban told The U.S. Sun at Coachella that watching Kim’s awkward fail made him never want to join an artist on stage.
In addition to his famous friends and public relations expertise, Cheban is also a self-proclaimed foodie, hence his nickname.
He frequently shares food content and also has an ice cream brand, Cold Case.
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CASTRO FAMILY SCANDAL
Castro’s cousins, Jean Pierre Castro and Byron Castro Jr. have been accused of stealing classic cars and pocketing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The cousins ran a classic car business in Laguna Beach, California, but are now facing criminal and civil charges for stealing.
Jean was charged with multiple counts of grand theft, grand theft auto, and white-collar crime.
Byron is facing one charge relating to false or forged documents.
The pair have also been charged with at least two separate civil lawsuits filed by alleged victims of the crimes.
Castro’s attorney previously told The U.S. Sun that he was shocked to learn of his cousins’ charges.
“Edwin Castro was completely surprised to learn of the allegations against Jean Pierre and Byron Castro,” his attorney Michael G. Freedman said.
“He had absolutely no involvement with the transactions and issues that led to the criminal charges, and he is re-evaluating his relationship with them.”
Castro’s cousins appeared in public for the first time on August 5.
They wore matching dark suits, tinted green face shields, and black masks.
The pair tried to hide their faces while arriving at a courthouse in a black SUV.
They reportedly took off their masks when they arrived inside the courtroom.
Castro is believed to have struck up a closer friendship with his cousins due to his interest in classic cars.
He was seen with Jean while hiking with his girlfriend Payten Vincent in July.
Edwin Castro’s Powerball win timeline
When and why Castro got sued
On November 7, 2022, Castro bought a winning Powerball ticket at Joe’s Service Center in Altadena, California.
The grand prize was $2.04 billion at the time – the largest in US history.
On February 14, 2023, the California Lottery announced Castro’s win, and he took home a one-time lump sum payment of $997.6 million.
Castro’s identity was released, but little information was known about the former mechanic.
In May 2023, Jose Rivera, a gardener from California, filed a lawsuit claiming that he was the rightful owner of the golden ticket.
Rivera claimed his former landlord Urachi F. Romero stole the ticket before it ended up in Castro’s hands.
Since filing the suit, Rivera has been charged with filing a false police report and was ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation by a judge.
However, Rivera pleaded not guilty to the charge, passed the evaluation, and continues to defend his story.
BILLION-DOLLAR LOVE
Castro seems to be striking up a relationship with a young model and poet.
The pair were first spotted outside the infamous Malibu sushi restaurant, Nobu.
Castro is frequently pictured leaving upscale spots in Los Angeles.
He was first seen with Vincent leaving Nobu in his Porsche while heading back to his $25.5 million mansion.
Vincent has also shared multiple photos of herself inside his luxurious homes.
They “hard launched” their relationship on social media a few weeks later at a Giorgio Armani event at the exclusive Soho House.
Vincent shared a sweet selfie of the two and wrote, “Last night at the @giorgioarmani event at @sohohouse [heart].”
“It seems like they are getting very serious very quickly because she knows all about his family dynamics and business affairs already,” a source previously told The U.S. Sun.
“He is looking to settle down very much, he is apparently not a one-night stand guy.
“She’s meeting the parents soon and has already met his brother and brother’s girlfriend from high school.”
The two have since been spotted all over Los Angeles living a lavish lifestyle with Castro’s winnings.
Edwin Castro’s Cars
Powerball winner Edwin Castro used his newfound fortune to express his love for cars, both new and old
Two years ago, Southern California native Edwin Castro was working as a mechanic before he won the Powerball Lottery of $2.04 billion.
After taxes, he took home $628.5 million, leaving plenty of room to buy the cars he’s always dreamed of.
These are the cars in his collection as of July 2024:
- 1980s Porsche 911 G Series Turbo Coupe, worth $135,491
- 1970s Porsche 356 Coupe, worth $250,000
- Grey 2023 Ram 1500 TRX – MSRP: $84,850 though dealerships often mark up to six figures
- Volkswagen Kharman Ghia (Black)
- Volkswagen Kharman Ghia (Black)
- Volkswagen Kharman Ghia (Red)
- 2024 Porsche 911 GT2RS, worth $500,000
Read More here
DEFENDING THE PRIZE
Castro has had to defend his Powerball winnings from Los Angeles gardener Jose Rivera, who alleges that he stole the winning ticket.
Rivera has claimed that he signed the back of the ticket, but Castro cashed in on the winnings.
The U.S. Sun previously revealed photographs of the ticket, which revealed Castro’s signature.
“You know what, that ticket is signed. They erased my information,” Rivera said.
“If you see carefully, there’s my phone number, they erased it with some chemicals.
“I’m gonna tell my criminal attorney to take it to a lab so they can do a test and see what kind of chemicals they used.
“I know my name was on that ticket, and my phone number.”
Castro’s legal team has maintained that the winning ticket rightfully belongs to him and denied Rivera’s claims.
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