A North Texas barber found a small fortune sitting right on top of an ATM last month — and returned every penny, authorities say.
The good Samaritan, who did not identify himself to CBS, went to the ATM with a 42-year-old woman when the two spotted bags filled with $128,510 in cash and a smaller bag containing 19 checks, police said.
“I’ve never had a case like this before,” Lewisville Police Detective Gina Miller told CBS.
After contacting 911, the benefactor – a 37-year-old man from the mid-sized Denton County town – noticed that one of the bags had a Chick-fil-A label and attempted to hand over the money to the fast-food restaurant, but the manager denied ownership.
An officer on site counted the money twice to confirm that each bill had been accounted for and that the money had been promptly stored in a secure location.
“I think finding that kind of money, or that amount of money, is certainly rare,” Lewisville Police Chief Brook Rollins told CBS.
“It’s very unusual. And then to not find a connection to criminal activity is certainly unusual.”
Cops confirmed the money belonged to Bank of America and was being processed by its cash management provider, Brinks.
A Brinks technician had repaired the ATM and was responsible for transporting the money, but he accidentally left the bags on top of the machine, according to police and CBS.
“The bag was right there,” Miller said. “There was no indication of a crime. It looked like it was left there by accident.”
Bank of America later recovered the lost money.
Rollins said the debacle shows how much police depend on community members.
“We are half of the equation, the police; the other half is the community,” he told CBS.
The Lewisville Police Department and Bank of America did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
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