Original Blog Entry: Central Iowa Man Claims $3 Million Prize

tokecap — Mon, 19 Jan 2026 14:11:11 GMT

CLIVE, Iowa A central Iowa man said he's most excited about one simple thing after winning $3 million: life without a mortgage payment.

Jaime Zavala of Norwalk claimed his Mega Millions Tuesday at the Iowa Lottery's main office in Clive. His ticket matched the first five numbers in the Nov. 11 drawing and missed winning that night's $900 million jackpot by just one number.

A Navy veteran, Zavala bought his winning ticket for the Veterans Day drawing at Kwik Star, 1200 Chatham Ave. in Norwalk.

The winning numbers in the Nov. 11 drawing were 10-13-40-42-46 and Mega Ball 1. Zavala's ticket was just one of three in the country to win a prize of $3 million or more in that drawing. A ticket purchased in New York also won $3 million, while a ticket purchased in Arizona won $5 million.

Kwik Star received a $3,000 bonus from the Iowa Lottery for selling the $3 million-winning ticket.

In addition to paying off his home, Zavala said he plans to invest the bulk of his winnings and upgrade his ride, replacing his current 10-year-old pickup with more than 250,000 miles on it.

https://www.ialottery.com/Pages/Pressroom/PressReleaseDetail.aspx?winnerID=2096#:~:text=Jaime%20Zavala%20of%20Norwalk%20claimed,jackpot%20by%20just%20one%20number.... [ More ]