Powerball winner charged with sexual assault of a minor

Kaitlyn Kanzler | The (Bergen County, N.J.) Record

Show Caption Hide Caption Passaic's lucky Powerball winner (2013) Pedro Quezada won $338 million from a Powerball ticket he purchased in 2013 at Eagle Liquors in Passaic, N.J. Originally published: March 26, 2013.

WOODLAND PARK, N.J. — Pedro Quezada, the winner of a $338 million Powerball jackpot in 2013, was arrested by Passaic County authorities on charges of sexually assaulting a young girl.

Quezada, 49, faces two counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault and one count of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child. He is accused of sexually assaulting the girl for three years, beginning when she was 11 years old and lasting until she was 14. The alleged assaults occurred in Passaic, where Quezada lived at the time.

Quezada, who lives in Wayne, could spend up to 20 years in prison for first-degree sexual assault and 10 years for endangering the welfare of a child.

This is not the first time Quezada has been in court. His former girlfriend, Ines Sanchez, sued him for a portion of his winnings and asked a judge to freeze his assets, alleging she is entitled to them. Sanchez and Quezada lived together for 10 years, shared ownership of a grocery store in Passaic and have a child together.

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The two allegedly had an agreement that each week they would share the purchase of a lottery ticket. There was also an alleged written agreement between Sanchez and Quezada stating that she was entitled to a share of the winnings.

Sanchez dropped her suit after Quezada agreed to pay all her legal fees generated by the lawsuit.

Additionally, after Quezada moved, his old neighbors accused him of reneging on a promise to help them by paying their rent, and he was sued by a contractor who claimed Quezada did not pay for renovations to the home he purchased in Clifton.