The winner of the $1.35 billion Mega Millions jackpot drawn Jan. 13 has yet to claim the prize, according to lottery officials.

And while the identity of the person who bought the ticket at a Maine convenience store is unknown, that may not necessarily stay the case if they come forward.

Once the winner claims their prize, their name and hometown are considered public information, according to Maine Lottery Commission Spokesperson Sharon Huntley. 

However, a little planning can ensure any real identifying data can be kept under wraps.

Huntley said the public information applies to whomever claims the prize, but that prize can also be claimed by a legal entity. 

In other words, she said, if the winner contacts an attorney and sets up a trust fund, the winner can then come to the lottery’s offices in Augusta and claim the prize in the name of the trust. 

At that point, Huntley said, the only thing disclosed to the public is the name of the trust itself, not the winner.

“They would have to come in having established the trust already,” she said.

The $1.35 billion jackpot was the second-largest in Mega Millions history, and the first Mega Millions jackpot to be won in Maine.

The winning ticket was sold Friday at Hometown Gas & Grill in Lebanon, a small, southern Maine town tucked in western York County on the New Hampshire border.

"Hopefully one of the residents and one of the regular customers is the winner," store owner Fred Cotreau told the Associated Press the day after the winning numbers were drawn. “It's exciting to have sold it but it's just more exciting for a single winner and I'm just really hoping it's somebody here in town.”

Even if the winner is from over the border in New Hampshire, they could still keep their anonymity and the jackpot. 

Maura McCann, spokesperson for the New Hampshire Lottery, said there are rules similar to Maine in her state for anyone claiming a prize greater than $600.

“We’re able to release their information publicly,” she said. “We believe it protects the integrity of the New Hampshire lottery.”

But just like Maine, McCann said, winners of large amounts of money can and do claim their prizes through a trust fund, keeping their names confidential.