Greenwich trio collect Powerball jackpot Powerball mystery revealed: Greenwich trio collect after-tax lump sum of $108M

Greenwich asset managers, from left, Tim Davidson, Greg Skidmore and Brandon Lacoff pose in Rocky Hill Monday with a symbolic check from CT Lottery representing the $254 million they won in the Powerball lottery. less Greenwich asset managers, from left, Tim Davidson, Greg Skidmore and Brandon Lacoff pose in Rocky Hill Monday with a symbolic check from CT Lottery representing the $254 million they won in the Powerball ... more Photo: Contributed Photo Photo: Contributed Photo Image 1 of / 8 Caption Close Greenwich trio collect Powerball jackpot 1 / 8 Back to Gallery

The mystery winners of a $254 million Powerball jackpot, a record for Connecticut, need only look in the mirror for wealth management advice.

All three work for a boutique money management firm in Greenwich, which has fewer assets under its control ($82 million) than their newfound winnings.

Greg Skidmore, Brandon Lacoff and Tim Davidson of Belpointe LLC revealed themselves as the winners during a check presentation Monday at the Connecticut Lottery headquarters in Rocky Hill.

The tight-lipped trio, who referred all questions to their lawyer, opted to collect an after-tax lump sum of $108 million.

"The one thing that we do know is that a significant amount is going to be going to Connecticut charities," said the spokesman, Jason Kurland, a Long Island, N.Y.-based attorney.

Kurland declined to comment on the circumstances surrounding the purchase of the winning ticket, which was sold at a BP gas station in the Shippan neighborhood of Stamford shortly before the Nov. 2 drawing.

Frank Farricker, a fellow Greenwich resident who is chairman of the Connecticut Lottery Corp., presented a poster-sized check to the trio during a news conference Monday.

"To their credit, they did show up to Rocky Hill in a very large stretch limo," Farricker said. "They were in suits."

The winning combination was 12-14-34-39-46, Powerball 36. The lucky ticket was a quick pick, with the numbers selected randomly by computer. It marked the third time in the past six months Greenwich produced a winner of a jackpot of at least $1 million

"The way we look at it is it's just another example that anyone can win the lottery," Farricker said. "There's no rule where people should be from or what economic class they should be in. These guys bought one ticket. I just think it's a good thing."

Farricker did a double-take when Lacoff showed up at lottery headquarters Monday. He wondered why he was there. They know one another from real estate circles in Greenwich, where Belpointe has a portfolio of properties.

Among those holdings is Beacon Hill of Greenwich, a cluster of multi-million dollar luxury townhomes on Soundview Drive in the downtown near Town Hall.

Belpointe has been an anchor sponsor of the Greenwich Wiffle Ball Tournament, a town-wide competition created after a group of teens were evicted from a field they built on a vacant municipal property in Riverside in 2008.

The lottery win is more than the firm's total assets under management, listed in Belpointe's most recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission registration. The firm said it had $82 million assets under management as of July.

Belpointe has several branches, including a connection with Lacoff's law firm, and a pre-existing real estate firm. It also offers insurance products.

Its asset management arm has between 251 to 500 clients, with high net worth individuals accounting for more than 51 percent of the firm's core business. The firm also provides services to pension funds, other individuals, corporations and some government entities.

Skidmore founded Belpointe Asset Management in 2007 after leaving Citi Smith Barney. He merged his business with Belray Capital, a real estate firm owned by Lacoff. Davidson was at UBS Wealth Management prior to joining Belpointe.

When Farricker left lottery headquarters Monday, he said officials there were in the processing of cutting a single check to the winners of the historic jackpot.

"I think I would have cried if I had actually seen the check," Farricker said. "My joke to people is if I ever won a lottery like that, my press conference would be at the airport."

Asked whether his clients, ages 36, 37 and 57, would be retiring or making any splurges, Kurland answered, "No. Not that I know of."

The owners of the Shippan BP station said lottery officials called them about 11:15 a.m. Monday with the news -- which involves a $100,000 retailer bonus -- but did not reveal the name of the winner.

"I was kind of shocked. I had heard it was somebody from Norwich, Norwalk and then Stamford. I was pleasantly surprised," said Carol Angotta of Wilton, who co-owns the BP with Michael Lindquist.

Officials announced three weeks ago that the winning ticket was sold in Fairfield County. Rumors had swirled about winners searching for lost tickets in Stamford, Danbury and elsewhere.

Valerie Lamb, a specialist in the CT Lottery's marketing department, said earlier Monday the lottery security department was keeping information about the supposed winner under wraps from the public and lottery staff.

Billboards were posted across the state urging the ticket holder to step forward and end the mystery. A similar message was posted on display screens at 2,700 retailers.

The person who bought the ticket had six months to claim the prize, which ranks as the 12th biggest jackpot in Powerball history. The money would go back to the states that fed the pot if a winner did not come forward by April 30.

Kurland revealed that his clients learned they hit the jackpot a day after the winning ticket was purchased, only to think they were off by a number when a television report misreported the numbers.

"They actually got one of the numbers wrong," Kurland said of the telecast.

Staff writer Neil Vigdor can be reached at neil.vigdor@scni.com or at 203-625-4436.

Staff writer Jeff Morganteen contributed to this report.