treasure in the hedge
Pensioners find gold jewelry and 100,000 euros in cash – and are allowed to keep everything
Among other things, these rings were found in the garbage bag
© Police Southeast Hesse
A Hessian pensioner found a garbage bag with extremely valuable contents while gardening. Since the owner could not be found, he may now keep the treasure.
A pensioner from near Hanau was amazed by this find. While gardening, the man discovered a garbage bag with extremely valuable contents in his hedge: gold jewelery worth 20,000 euros, plus 100,000 euros in cash. The honest finder brought the treasure to the police last November – but an owner has not yet been found.
Therefore, the pensioner can now keep his garden find, as the Offenbach police confirmed to Hessischer Rundfunk. “This is what the regulations in the Civil Code (BGB) provide for,” explained a police spokesman to HR. Paragraph 973 of the BGB says on the subject: “With the expiration of six months after the report of the find to the competent authority, the The finder retains ownership of the item unless the finder has previously become aware of a person entitled to receive or has registered his right with the competent authority.
Unsuccessful search for origin
The Hanau police had even publicly searched for a rightful owner with photos of the found item. In addition to the cash, there were two dozen rings and various pendants. However, due to its external condition, the bag had probably been in the hedge for a few years, the police said.
The police could not assign the hedge find to a possible criminal offense either. Although numerous tips were received from all over Germany and abroad, these did not lead to anything. For example, there was evidence of a raid on the Hanau barracks in the 1980s. But that was still in the days of the Deutsche Mark – euro notes like the ones found in bags didn’t even exist back then. Even a review of the bill numbers by the Bundesbank did not yield any useful information.
“We have done everything in our power,” the police spokesman told HR. Therefore, the finder may now keep the jewelry and the cash. “He did everything right by reporting the find and then getting paid for it.”
Sources: Hessen show / police