Mario Gomez Saldana II of Mint Hill said he plans to take a dream trip to the Grand Canyon after he won $100,000 playing the $5,000,000 Mega Cash scratch-off game.
“I’ve always wanted to go there,” Gomez Saldana said. “Now I’ll have the chance.”
His good fortune happened Monday just before midnight when he stopped by the Circle K on Lawyers Road in Charlotte and bought the $20 ticket.
“I was just planning to get some snacks,” Gomez Saldana explained. “I grabbed an Airhead, and some Cheerwine. I decided at the last minute to get a lottery ticket.”
The house painter scratched the ticket in the store.
“I got to the last number and couldn’t believe it,” Gomez Saldana said. “I started shaking. I’ve only bought like 10 lottery tickets in my life. It’s crazy!”
Gomez Saldana claimed his prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After required state and federal tax withholdings, he took home $70,507. Besides his trip, he plans to take the summer off.
$5,000,000 Mega Cash launched in May 2017 with three $5 million prizes, six $1 million prizes, and six $100,000 prizes. Two $5 million prizes, two $1 million prizes, and two $100,000 prizes remain.
Ticket sales from games like $5,000,000 Mega Cash make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $54.9 million for Mecklenburg County. For details on how lottery funds have made a difference in all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.