North Carolina teen wins $1 million lottery prize

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — A Raleigh teenager hit a big jackpot when he won $1 million.

Jalen McLean, 18, of Raleigh, couldn’t help but smile after a $10 scratch-off ticket turned into a $1 million prize.

“I feel like the luckiest guy in the universe,” he said.

McLean gave his sister some money on Tuesday and told her to pick out a scratch-off for him. She chose a $10 Jumbo Bucks ticket from the Valero on South McPherson Church Road in Fayetteville. After she brought it back, she sat with McLean as he scratched off his ticket.

“He had a huge smile on his face,” his sister Dasha Silas recalled. “Like so big it looked like the movie character Venom.”

McLean laughed when trying to articulate what the wins meant to him.

“How many 18-year-olds win something like this?” he said with a smile.

McLean arrived at lottery headquarters on Wednesday to collect his prize. He had a choice to receive the prize as an annuity of $50,000 over 20 years or a lump sum of $600,000.

McLean chose the annuity of $50,000. Until he turns 38, McLean will receive a check for $50,000 until the full $1 million prize is paid.

He received the first of 20 payments on Wednesday and took home $35,753 after taxes. McLean said he would use the winnings to buy an Audi.

The Jumbo Bucks game started in June with seven $1 million top prizes. Two $1 million prizes remain to be claimed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX8 WGHP.