The winner of the fourth-largest Powerball prize in history will split hundreds of millions of dollars with a friend. The Laotian immigrant, 42, said he plans to give half of the money to his wife, Duanpen, and the other to his friend, Laiza Chao, who helped him buy the tickets that won the lottery on Oct. 14 this year. The couple lives in Portland, Oregon. The couple is among thousands of Iu Mien migrants who emigrated to the United States in the late 1980s through a refugee rescue program, settling in Portland and other West Coast cities.

The couple won more than $1.3 billion after federal and state taxes, and will receive their prize in 30 years. They chose the lump-sum option for tax purposes. The winning numbers were drawn from a computerized drawing and were matched on the second draw of a series of tickets sold in Oregon and in dozens of other states. The ticket was purchased at a Plaid Pantry convenience store in early April. Oregon does not allow lottery winners to keep their identities from the public with a few exceptions.

The winning ticket was the first in a series of three that included the number 509. That number is associated with buffalo, which are considered a symbol of good luck. A source in Laos told RFA’s Lao Service that the government should resume control of the national lottery, adding that private business interests involved with the lottery often have links to the country’s ruling elite.