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Edwin Castro hires ‘hotshot’ lawyer who represented Bill Cosby & Harvey Weinstein as lottery ticket fight intensifies
The lottery winner is spending big bucks as he fights accuser Jose Rivera in court
POWERBALL winner Edwin Castro's new, celebrated lawyer represented Bill Cosby and Harvey Weinstein, among several high-profile clients, and is gearing up for next month's court hearing.
Castro, who is being sued for allegedly cashing in a stolen $2.04 billion ticket, has hired veteran trial lawyer Michael Freedman of The Freedman Firm.
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The U.S. Sun can reveal his new attorney has taken on some of the biggest cases in Los Angeles in recent years.
He was seen leaving court this week with his client Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani.
Mizuhara pleaded guilty on Tuesday to bank and tax fraud, admitting to stealing nearly $17 million from the player to pay off sports betting debts in a case that has rocked the world of baseball.
In 2022, Freedman also repped disgraced comedian Bill Cosby who was accused of sexually assaulting a teen at the Playboy Mansion in 1975.
Edwin Castro
Although the verdict ruled in the woman's favor, awarding Judy Huth $50,000 in damages, Freedman still had success in the case.
His firm's website states he, "Defeated punitive damages claim for millions of dollars following month-long trial on behalf of legendary comedian Bill Cosby."
HIGH PRAISE
In May 2023, Variety reported the experienced lawyer was then hired as part of Harvey Weinstein's new legal team.
His firm was tasked with handling the former producer's Los Angeles appeal after he was found guilty of sexual assault and rape and sentenced to 16 years.
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Edwin Castro's rival Jose Rivera claims pizza photo will prove he owns $2bn lottery ticket as court battle rumbles on
Freedman is still representing Weinstein in his California case after his New York conviction was overturned.
Meanwhile, the lawyer has also had success with rapper Trey Songz who won his sexual assault case after a judge tossed out a $10 million lawsuit earlier this year.
The woman filed under "Jane Doe," and alleged Songz pulled down her bikini top and exposed her breast without her consent during a pool party at a Connecticut casino in 2013, which he denied.
Before the outcome, Freedman said, "This is yet another example of decade-old allegations being repurposed into a federal case to take advantage of California’s constitutionally questionable new look back window. We look forward to vindicating Trey on the merits in court."
According to online profiles, Freedman is the principal and founder of the Freedman Firm, and is a former federal prosecutor who deals with everything from criminal charges to high-stakes civil litigation and appeals.
YEAR-LONG CASE
Other successes include winning an acquittal for a conspiracy charge as the sole trial counsel for R. Kelly's alleged former manager in the Southern District of New York.
He has won high praise and been listed in Forbes, while the La Business Journal also described him as, "one of the top criminal defense and trial attorneys of his generation."
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Freedman for comment on the Castro case but did not hear back.
Court filings from the civil case show the 32-year-old is now being represented by Freedman, who will likely appear either in person or via Zoom at the next hearing on July 25 in Alhambra.
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.
Castro's rival Jose Rivera, a Los Angeles gardener, filed his suit back in February 2023, and refuses to back down, despite being charged with filing a false police complaint and wasting time and resources.
He has pleaded not guilty in his criminal case in Pasadena, with the next hearing scheduled for July 8, and is continuing with his civil suit.
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The U.S. Sun reported he has hired John Michael Flanagan, the defense attorney who represented Michael Jackson's disgraced doctor Conrad Murray.
Flanagan saw Murray through his trial and his manslaughter conviction for his role in the pop superstar's death.
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