Chicago Mother Claims $400,000 Top Prize On $5 Lottery Ticket
Photo caption: Claudia of Chicago, poses with her winning ticket after claiming a $400,000 top prize on a $5 Illinois Lottery instant ticket.
CHICAGO, August 20, 2026 — A routine grocery run at her neighborhood convenience store ended with an unforgettable surprise for Claudia of Chicago, who scratched her way to a $400,000 top prize on the Illinois Lottery’s In The Money Instant Ticket.
Claudia purchased the winning ticket at California Enterprises, located at 2800 W. 55th St. in Chicago.
Claudia found out she won when she scanned the ticket in-store - which she did multiple times and then tried again using the Illinois Lottery app, as she couldn’t believe how much she’d won.
“I thought I was losing my mind—I lost track of how many times I checked the results,” she said with a laugh.
When she got home, Claudia shared the news with her family, who were just as skeptical.
“I immediately told my mom and sister,” she recalled. “They said, ‘No way, you’re playing with us.’ I told them, ‘Well, I’ve already scanned this thing a million times today—let's make it a million and one.’”
A devoted mother of three, Claudia already knows how she plans to use her winnings. She intends to invest in her children’s education and surprise them with a back-to-school shopping spree.
“They have no idea it's actually for school supplies,” she laughed.
For selling the winning ticket, the retailer will receive a $4,000 bonus—equal to 1% of the prize amount.
So far this year, nearly 37 million winning Instant Tickets have been sold, with players statewide claiming over $1 billion in prizes.
The Illinois Lottery currently offers a range of Instant Tickets priced from $1 to $50, available at approximately 7,000 retail locations across Illinois.
Instant Tickets b-roll, available for use by the media, download here.
The Illinois Lottery reminds players to play for fun, not funds. Be Smart, Play Smart®. Must be 18 or older to play. Game odds available at IllinoisLottery.com.
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About the Illinois Lottery
The Illinois Lottery, founded in 1974, has contributed over $25 billion to the State’s Common School Fund in support of K-12 public education in Illinois since 1985. The Common School Fund is the Illinois Lottery’s primary beneficiary, receiving nearly 99% of Illinois Lottery proceeds. The Illinois Lottery also supports various specialty causes as described in the Illinois Lottery Law (20 ILCS 1605/21.4). For more information about the Illinois Lottery and the causes we support, please visit IllinoisLottery.com.