Immigrant who arrived in US as a child with nothing wins $15 million lottery jackpot

CLOVERDALE, Calif. (WKRC) – A California man who immigrated from Mexico as a child says a $15 million scratch-off win feels like proof that decades of hard work have paid off.

Fernando Ayala won the jackpot on a Royal Jackpot Scratchers ticket purchased at a Quik Stop in Cloverdale, according to the California Lottery.

Ayala said he bought a scratch-off ticket the day before and won $40. He returned the next day, noticed another ticket in the machine and bought it.

“It was right there,” Ayala said. “Anybody can go and buy it — I feel like the ticket was waiting for me all night.”

Ayala, who came to the United States when he was 12, said he slept by a river when he first arrived and washed dishes for years.

“I never made this kind of money and I know how hard it is to earn a living,” he told lottery officials.

He said the win will not change who he is.

“I’ve worked my entire life, and I know how hard it is to make money,” he said. “I’m still going to work, still going to help people and still live my life the same way. That’s who I am.”

Ayala said he plans to spend time with family and continue working.