A Man Finds $12,000 In Cash In A Parking Lot, Returns It To Owner

September 30, 2024

Today's good news story comes from Shrewsbury, Massachusetts.

A shopper discovered $12,000 in cash in a parking lot and returned it to its rightful owner.

Skip / Credit: Truong Huynh

Van Ha had just returned home from her weekly trip to Market Basket on Sunday when she realized something critical was missing: an envelope containing $12,000 in cash.

Panicked, she called her nephew, Truong Huynh, and the two hurried back to the store, hoping to recover the lost envelope.

Dan Desfosses, the store manager, met the anxious family in the parking lot and offered to review surveillance footage to help. They found a video of Ha exiting her car earlier in the day and entering the store, but it didn’t capture her dropping the envelope.

"I took down their name and number and said I'd call them if anything turned up," Desfosses shared. "Then, when I walked back inside the store, sure enough, there was a gentleman at the service counter with the cash."

The man, a regular shopper known as Skip, rushed outside with Desfosses and reunited the family with the money.

"We were about to leave when the manager came over to us with a man named Skip. He'd found the money. We were so happy," Huynh said. The money was crucial for supporting their family, and Huynh added that in some cultures and generations, it's common to carry large sums of cash.

Reflecting on the incident, Huynh said, "We were so excited, we left right away and went home without thinking about it. Then we wanted to thank Skip, so we went back to Market Basket with a reward."

Though Skip had already gone home, his girlfriend, an employee at the store on Hartford Turnpike, accepted a $300 reward on his behalf.

"It takes a special kind of person to do something so honest and selfless, and Skip, you are a true example of integrity and compassion," Huynh wrote on social media. "Thank you, Skip — you’ve touched more lives than you know today."

Desfosses added, "It was just so very nice. I don't know a lot of people who would have done that — I mean, finding just a bank teller envelope, no name on it, you know."