Citizen Who Found a 50 Million Won Check Refuses Reward... "Please Donate It"

Donation of 3.5 Million Won in the Name of the Check Owner and Finder

A citizen who returned a 50 million won check to its owner even donated the reward money he received as a token of appreciation.

On the 7th, Yonhap News reported the story of Wi Seong-hwan, a resident of Seoul, who said he received calls last October from the Busan Saha Police Station and a bank informing him that they were holding a large sum of money in checks.

(This photo is not directly related to the article.) [Photo source=Pixabay]

The information conveyed to Mr. Wi by the police and the bank was as follows: One 30 million won check and one 20 million won check were found in clothes belonging to his father who passed away two years ago, and someone discovered and reported them as lost property. At that time, the bank received the found checks from the police but, since no loss report had been filed, they contacted the heirs of the check issuer.

The person who found and reported the checks is Cha Sang-jae, a resident of Busan. Upon learning this, Mr. Wi wanted to express his gratitude by giving Mr. Cha a reward. According to the Lost Property Act, the finder of lost property can receive a reward between 5% and 20% of the amount. However, Mr. Cha declined the reward. Mr. Wi persuaded him several times, saying he wanted to at least give the minimum reward of 5%, which was 2.5 million won.

Eventually, Mr. Cha suggested that Mr. Wi donate the reward on his behalf. Mr. Wi added 1 million won to the 2.5 million won he intended to give and donated 3.5 million won to the Saha District Office at the end of last month. The donation was made under the name of the finder, Cha Sang-jae.

However, Mr. Cha requested that the donation be made under the original check owner's name. He also did not disclose his age or occupation.

A Saha District official told Yonhap News, "We were moved by the request from both the check owner and the person who found the check to donate under each other's names," and added, "In the end, we listed the finder, Cha Sang-jae, as the donor."

Saha District plans to deliver the donation to Aeawon, a child care facility.