What to do if you find money in a store?

The law’s answer is clear: California Penal Code Section 485 stipulates that if you find money you need to make “reasonable and just efforts to find the owner.” Otherwise, you’re “guilty of theft.” “If you find even a quarter, you’re technically obligated to turn it in,” says Sgt.

Can I keep money if I find it?

Even though cash is not marked with the owner’s identity? like a check or savings bond? it is a piece of property that originally belonged to someone other than the finder. So technically, cash you find is not automatically yours.

Do you have to hand in found money?

Yes, according to the police, who say it is up to the individual what they do if they find any amount of cash – there is no requirement to hand over money you find, or even any other items. …

What are the rules of finders keepers?

Finders, keepers, sometimes extended as the children’s rhyme finders, keepers; losers, weepers, is an English adage with the premise that when something is unowned or abandoned, whoever finds it first can claim it for themselves permanently.

Can you keep something you find?

Common law defines lost property as personal property that was unintentionally left by its true owner. At common law, a person who found lost personal property could keep it until and unless the original owner comes forward.

What do you do if you find a lot of money?

These laws usually require that a person who finds money, especially larger amounts (for example $100 or more), turn it over to the local police. If no one claims it after a certain period of time, the police can then give it to the finder to keep.

What happens if you find money that doesn’t belong to you?

Even though you did not steal the money by taking it directly from its owner, you are holding the money and not trying to return it. Holding or possessing property that you know does not belong to you also constitutes theft or larceny under most state laws. You also can make your own efforts to identify or locate the owner of money you have found.

What should you do if you find stolen cash?

‘If the item has been found in a location where a third party might be in a position to confirm or otherwise locate the owner – such as, for example, shop staff – then they should be approached.’ However, if you don’t think leaving it with that person will result in the cash being returned, you should take it to the police yourself.

What are the laws around keeping found cash?

Until now, laws around keeping found cash has been pretty hazy. Technically, the crime is known as ‘theft by finding’. This means that if you find a wad of cash on the street and don’t try to return it to its owner – by handing it into the shop, for example, or the police – you’re guilty of theft.