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Homeless man finds $40,000 in travelers checks and cash, hands it over to police

A homeless man handed police in Dorchester a bag containing $2,400 in cash, $39,500 in American Express Travelers Cheques, passports and various personal papers.
A homeless man handed police in Dorchester a bag containing $2,400 in cash, $39,500 in American Express Travelers Cheques, passports and various personal papers.Boston Police Department

A homeless man in Boston who found a backpack containing $2,400 in cash and $39,500 in travelers checks turned over the lost treasure to the police.

The man, whom police did not immediately identify, found the bag at the front of the TJ Maxx Store, in the Dorchester neighborhood, Boston Police Department said in a statement on Sunday.

The bag's owner had told staff at a nearby store he "lost his backpack containing a large sum of money" and his passport, police said. He was positively identified by his People's Republic of China passport.

The incident happened Saturday evening when the homeless man flagged down police patrolling the area and told them he found the bag.

"The good Samaritan could only provide officers with his name and the address of the shelter where he currently lives," the police statement said.

About an hour later, police were contacted by staff at Best Buy, in the same South Bay Mall as the TJ Maxx store, to say they had been contacted by the owner of the bag.

A spokeswoman from Boston Police Department told NBC News on Monday that they were looking into the possibility of holding a news conference for the two men to speak publicly.