Albany, Georgia police seek to identify a man who kept $30 found on a floor at a local Walmart.
The police department of Albany, Georgia, is seeking to identify an older man who picked up $30.00 from the ground while shopping at a Walmart and failed to turn it in to employees. The department shared a grainy photo of the man pushing a cart and asked for public assistance in identifying him. While many commenters viewed the act as harmless, Georgia Code § 16-8-6 states that keeping property known to be lost or mislaid without making reasonable efforts to return it to the owner is considered the criminal offense of theft of the lost or mislaid property. Although there is no official 'finders keepers' rule in any jurisdiction, state laws vary on how long unclaimed property becomes yours. Lawson and Berry, a Georgia criminal law firm, explained that criminal charges may not be issued for every instance of finders keepers. Criminal intent appears as soon as a property is discovered to be lost and the owner is not returned. However, the firm noted that if a person realizes the property is stolen, they must take reasonable measures to return it to avoid charges.