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. There is always the risk that someone will say they dropped the money just to be able to claim it.
In those kinds of situations, you have to use your own judgment about whether the person claiming the money is being truthful. If the money is in a wallet, you should check for ID. If the wallet contains no ID but does have credit cards, you can call the customer service number on a credit card and the card company can contact the owner. You also should look inside a container of cash for any information it might contain about the owner.
With regard to the money found behind the basement wall, you could try to contact the previous owners of the home and ask if they knew anything about any property being stored behind the basement walls. Especially if you find a large amount of money, it probably is best to contact an attorney who can verify local laws regarding lost and found cash and advise you on how to proceed.
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The attorney listings on this site are paid attorney advertising. In some states, the information on this website may be considered a lawyer referral service. A spokeswoman for the Association of Chief Police Officers says: "There are no laws that I am aware of governing what you should do with a find — it is down to your conscience. However, if an item can be traced as it includes information about the owner, such as a mobile phone or handbag, then you might want to make sure to hand it in.
However, the law doesn't seem to be as clear as that suggests, and there have been occasions where people have ended up in trouble for keeping hold of an item that they knew wasn't theirs - like this one of a couple who claimed the winnings from a found lottery ticket - so it may be wise to err on the side of caution. Most of us would probably think twice about pocketing more than the odd coin or note.
If you do hand a large sum of money to the police, however, you shouldn't assume you will get it back if it goes unclaimed. The law is different if the money you find is antique, however, as there are all sorts of regulations governing what you must do with significant finds. If you find a large amount of money or other valuable property, simply keeping it could land you in a lot of trouble. Boyagdis decided to keep the money instead of handing it in or trying to find the owner, even though the bag containing the money also held a drivers licence, a Medicare card and an iPhone.
In court, he pleaded guilty to the charges of larceny. In New South Wales it is punishable by up to 5 years imprisonment, home detention, community service and good behaviour bonds. Offenders may also have to make reparations to the victim.
If the person accused of the crime honestly believed that the property was abandoned or that the owner cannot be found, they are not guilty. It has long since been the law that people who come across lost property cannot keep it for themselves without first trying to find the owner. If you hand the money in, and the real owner never comes forward, you may even be allowed to keep it.
If you think that handing in a large amount of cash is unlikely to be left unclaimed, think again. In cases involving large amounts of cash, where the money may be the proceeds of crime, the real owner may have good reason not to step forward and claim the money.
Stretching back centuries, the English and Australian courts have been enforcing the rights of finders. After finding a piece of jewellery and taking it to a goldsmith for valuation, the jeweller attempted to pay the boy off with a measly three halfpence. In court, the judge awarded the jewellery to the boy, with the explanation that while the boy did not have a claim of absolute ownership, his claim was better than everyone else except for that of the true owner who was at the time, unidentified.
Numerous court cases since have affirmed the rights that finders have in relation to lost property. There are of course, limitations — you cannot have been trespassing when you found the property, been acting dishonestly, or have found it in a place considered private property. So while finders keepers does have a somewhat legal basis, it is not going to work if you quietly pocket any six-figure cash amounts you come across. While the chance of finding a suitcase or wallet containing hundreds of thousands of dollars, or any other form of expensive property may not be likely, remember that this applies to smaller amounts, too.
Boyagdis found out, can be very costly. Ugur Nedim is an Accredited Criminal Law Specialist with over 20 years of experience as a criminal defence lawyer. Going to Court? Book Your Free First Appointment. Book a Lawyer. Fixed Fees We have competitive Fixed Fees for a range of Criminal and Driving cases so you will know exactly how much your case will cost.
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