Winning $3 million Mega Millions ticket sat in nightstand for over a month

PORTSMOUTH, Va. - A Virginia woman said a Mega Millions ticket that turned out to be worth $3 million sat in the drawer of her nightstand for over a month before she finally checked it and discovered she was a winner.

Portsmouth resident Melena Hill bought the ticket for the January 9 game and finally checked the numbers more than five weeks after the drawing.

"My stomach had butterflies. I screamed a little bit!" she told lottery officials when she claimed her winnings.

Virginia woman Melena Hill says winning $3 million Mega Millions ticket sat in nightstand for over a month

Melena matched the first five numbers and missed only the Mega Ball number. Normally, that combination would be worth a $1 million prize. However, she spent an extra dollar for the Megaplier when she bought the ticket – a decision that tripled her winnings!

The lucky ticket was purchased at a Murphy USA gas station on College Drive in Suffolk.

The current Mega Millions jackpot is worth $735 million. The next drawing will be held on Tuesday.