Girl picks up pile of cash, helps return it to owner

Footage shared by the National Police Agency shows a high school girl picking up cash that was dropped earlier by a man, at Hadong-gun, South Gyeongsang Province, Feb.27. (National Police Agency’s YouTube)

The National Police Agency on Wednesday shared on its official YouTube page a video of a teenage girl who came across a pile of cash and helped return it to the owner.

In the surveillance camera footage, a man was shown dropping 1.22 million won ($890) in cash while riding a bicycle in Hadong-gun, South Gyeongsang Province, on Feb. 27. A few moments later, a young girl came by and stopped in her tracks.

She took out a phone to take a photo of the money, after which she picked up the bills. The girl, who later turned out to be a high school freshman, then reported what she found to a local police station.

Officers then checked the surveillance footage and tracked down the owner, returning the money to him.

The man thanked the teen and gave the girl 200,000 won as a reward. He also offered the girl a free meal at his restaurant for the rest of her life.

South Korean law states that anyone who finds a lost item and returns it to the owner is entitled to receive between 5 percent and 20 percent of the value of the item from the owner. A person who finds someone else's property and keeps it for him or herself can be subject to up to one year in prison or a fine of 3 million won.

By Yoon Min-sik(minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)