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What would you have done?

What would you have done?

  • I'd have done what Robert Adams did.

    Votes: 11 78.6%
  • I'd have kept the money.

    Votes: 3 21.4%

  • Total voters
    14

Dittohead not!

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Chicago-area man returns bag with $17K in cash

"I wanted to get a large horchata, which is almost like a rice or coconut milk," Adams told the Daily Herald (Arlington Heights) for a story published Wednesday. "I would have grabbed a chorizo burrito, too, but I didn't have enough money."

That changed Monday when the Chicago-area man stood at a Chase ATM in Rolling Meadows, looked down and discovered on the sidewalk near a newspaper box a clear plastic bag containing receipts, checks and $17,021 in cash — mostly $20 and $100 bills bound by a rubber band.
 
I would feel like scum if I kept even a portion of that money. Good on him!
 
Yeah, I'd return it in a situation like that where this is some possible way of identifying who it belongs to. That's a lot of money to just lose. I'd feel like crap about it. If there's some sort of marking or receipts or something, you can find who it belongs to.

But if it were just an unmarked bag of money? Keep it. There's no way of finding who it belongs to. The police will just keep it themselves if you turn it in. I'd sit on it for a week or two and watch the papers and the news for anyone looking for it. If no one was, just keep it.

It really depends if there's any way to identify who the money may belong to, or anything for that matter. I had a friend who found a nearly new iPod on the side walk. He checked if it was registered - it wasn't. Watched Craigslist and the paper for anyone looking for it - no one was. So he kept it. What else is he supposed to do with it?
 
Yeah, I'd return it in a situation like that where this is some possible way of identifying who it belongs to. That's a lot of money to just lose. I'd feel like crap about it. If there's some sort of marking or receipts or something, you can find who it belongs to.

But if it were just an unmarked bag of money? Keep it. There's no way of finding who it belongs to. The police will just keep it themselves if you turn it in. I'd sit on it for a week or two and watch the papers and the news for anyone looking for it. If no one was, just keep it.

It really depends if there's any way to identify who the money may belong to, or anything for that matter. I had a friend who found a nearly new iPod on the side walk. He checked if it was registered - it wasn't. Watched Craigslist and the paper for anyone looking for it - no one was. So he kept it. What else is he supposed to do with it?

Unmarked, unidentified money...I guess it would depend on the amount. If I find $20 on the sidewalk I'd probably pocket it. If I found $2,000 I think I'd turn it in. For all I know, that was some teenager's car savings...
 
Yeah, I'd return it in a situation like that where this is some possible way of identifying who it belongs to. That's a lot of money to just lose. I'd feel like crap about it. If there's some sort of marking or receipts or something, you can find who it belongs to.

But if it were just an unmarked bag of money? Keep it. There's no way of finding who it belongs to. The police will just keep it themselves if you turn it in. I'd sit on it for a week or two and watch the papers and the news for anyone looking for it. If no one was, just keep it.

It really depends if there's any way to identify who the money may belong to, or anything for that matter. I had a friend who found a nearly new iPod on the side walk. He checked if it was registered - it wasn't. Watched Craigslist and the paper for anyone looking for it - no one was. So he kept it. What else is he supposed to do with it?

Fingerprints on the bag or money (or in your friends case iPod) could lead to who it belongs to.

In any case returning it or turning it in to the police is the right and proper thing to do. Anything else imo is theft.
 
Fingerprints on the bag or money (or in your friends case iPod) could lead to who it belongs to.

In any case returning it or turning it in to the police is the right and proper thing to do. Anything else imo is theft.

Fingerprints are only in database if you've committed a crime or worked for the government. Most people intrusted with a $17+ thousand dollar deposit are probably not former criminals, for one. Secondly, most police departments are not going to expend resources running an anonymous item through forensics and data analysis. They'll hold it on the chance somebody comes looking for it. After a certain period of time it probably goes into the auction pile (not sure what they do with money, though).
 
Unmarked, unidentified money...I guess it would depend on the amount. If I find $20 on the sidewalk I'd probably pocket it. If I found $2,000 I think I'd turn it in. For all I know, that was some teenager's car savings...

Why? There's no difference between what you could do, looking for who it belongs to, and what the police would do. As you said above, I think correctly, they probably wouldn't waste resources on forensics.

If it got over about 3k, I'd start worrying about it being drug money of some sort. That may change the game for me a bit, in terms of keep/turn in. But in terms of unmarked items or money, the police won't do anything you couldn't do yourself fairly easily.

I remember when I was 8 or 9, I found 30 bucks laying on the sidewalk at the fair and I turned it in. Later, I realized how stupid that was. How exactly are they going to reconnect someone with their unmarked 10-dollar bills? And 30 bucks is a fortune to a kid! :D
 
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Temptation would be great, but turning it in would be personally gratifying.
The police will give you a receipt, if not request one. Should the owner not claim the money within one year it reverts to the finder.
 
I call horse ****.

I know alot of people like to think they'd give up almost 20,000 dollars but in a real life situation I think it would be alot harder to do, especially when I'm weighing the options.

1. Give the money back to some idiot that was walking around with 17k in a bag
2. I have been wanting to build an outdoor kitchen...

Basically, if I saw someone drop something then of course I'd catch up to them and return it. If I just found a big bag of money? I'm calling the local pool company to get an estimate...
 
I would have kept it. Money showing up like that happens for a reason. The guy was poor and the universe was helping him out... but I guess in the end you can always exercise your free will and do what you want with it.
 
I call horse ****.

I know alot of people like to think they'd give up almost 20,000 dollars but in a real life situation I think it would be alot harder to do, especially when I'm weighing the options.

1. Give the money back to some idiot that was walking around with 17k in a bag
2. I have been wanting to build an outdoor kitchen...

Basically, if I saw someone drop something then of course I'd catch up to them and return it. If I just found a big bag of money? I'm calling the local pool company to get an estimate...

A pool and an outdoor kitchen for 17 grand? Sweet!
 
A pool and an outdoor kitchen for 17 grand? Sweet!

Ah, I'd have to decide which is more important. I'm leaning pool with a decent grill. Even if I had to shell out a little myself it'd be worth it in this Louisiana heat.
 
I call horse ****.

I know alot of people like to think they'd give up almost 20,000 dollars but in a real life situation I think it would be alot harder to do, especially when I'm weighing the options. ...

I'd turn it in or directly return it. I have a 10 yr old, and I am NOT going to set a bad example by keeping something that belongs to someone else.
 
I would have kept it. Money showing up like that happens for a reason. The guy was poor and the universe was helping him out... but I guess in the end you can always exercise your free will and do what you want with it.

Maybe the universe was testing him... and he passed.
 
If I just found it, and there was no way to identify who's it was, I'd probably keep it. But if I could contact the person it belonged too, I'd give it back.
 
Maybe the universe was testing him... and he passed.

Maybe. I guess it was up to him to decide what the money meant to him, and he did.

I can't say how I would've reacted, but from where I'm sitting I'm pretty sure I would have kept it.
 
I'd keep it. Any twinges of conscience would be assuaged by paying off my debts and helping my friends.
 
If there were an easy way to find out who it belonged to, I would probably return it. If not, I'd happily keep it.
 
A bag with thousands in cash probably belongs to a criminal. You risk prison and/or death if anyone figures out you have it. I probably wouldn't risk it for 17k, although that might change depending on how desperate I was.
 
For me, my guilt would outweigh my temptation and I would turn it in.
 
Guilt schmilt ... there are camera's there they would have caught up with him anyway if he took the money. Besides, that's why Banks carry insurance...
 
If any way to ID the owner, probably return.

If over, say, 5k (perhaps less?), I would be worried about it being crime-related.

If crime related, what if it was part of a law enforcement operation, and the cash is marked?

I would probably turn it in.

But, as some have mentioned, if it's like one or more bills lying on the ground, probably not.
 
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