OSAKA (TR) – To be filed under: no good deed goes unpunished.
Earlier this year, a 70-year-old man living in Osaka City’s Nishi Ward lodged a suit after finding a wallet with more than 400,000 yen in cash but failed to receive any recompense from the owner of the lost article.
However, reports the Sankei Shimbun (April 12), the pair reached a settlement this week whereby the Good Samaritan will indeed be compensated.
According to the complaint, filed with the Osaka Summary Court, the plaintiff found the long wallet containing 430,000 yen in cash and a My Number card on a sidewalk in Nishi Ward in January and delivered it to the Nishi Police Station.
That same day, the wallet was returned to its 50-year-old male owner. The plaintiff provided his phone number to the owner through the police, but there was no contact.
At some point later, the plaintiff called the owner, who hung up without offering thanks. “I’m busy,” he reportedly said. The owner also did not answer the plaintiff’s phone thereafter. He also failed to respond to text messages.
The Lost Property Law stipulates that the owner must pay the finder a reward equivalent to between five and 20 percent of the value of the lost property.
In February, the plaintiff filed the lawsuit, which sought about 86,000 yen in compensation. The court proceedings began on March 12, at which time the owner expressed an intention to pay compensation. Later, both sides agreed to an amount of 70,000 yen in compensation.
In an interview with the Yomiuri, the plaintiff explained, “I didn’t want the money, and I wouldn’t have filed a lawsuit if he had expressed gratitude.” The owner said simply, “I was too busy with work to respond.”
