Jobless Man Finds $150K in Garden

Illinois carpenter may get to keep cash after a year
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 1, 2011 3:43 AM CDT
Updated Sep 4, 2011 6:49 AM CDT
Jobless Illinois Man Wayne Sabaj Finds $150K in Garden
"That could have been somebody's life savings, you know? That wouldn't be fair if I just kept it," says Sabaj, who has been struggling to find work.   (YouTube)

Wayne Sabaj went into his backyard garden looking for broccoli and found $150,000 instead. The unemployed and very honest Illinois carpenter—fearing the cash packed into two duffel bags might have come from a bank robbery—alerted police to the discovery. Investigators have been unable to find the source of the cash, and have left a note in the spot where it was found.

Sabaj, 49, may get to keep the money if it goes unclaimed for a year—but he says he's not holding his breath. "I don't even think I'll get it back, and even if I do, the government's just going to take a third of it back," he tells ABC. "You just can't worry about it." (More Illinois stories.)

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