Could You Do This? Tampa Man Finds Briefcase With $8K…and Returns It
- Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:28pm by
Becket Adams
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Proving that Good Samaritans still exist, a Tampa Bay man found a briefcase filled with $8,000 cash and returned to its rightful owner.
See the WIVB news brief:
Lying in the middle of the road, the bag went unnoticed for nearly an hour Sunday afternoon. Cars drove over it; others swerved to avoid it. Eventually, one driver made a U-turn to retrieve the bag from the road.
Frank Colla reasoned that someone’s laptop might be in the bag. So, he figured that he’d get it out of the road and track down its owner. What he found instead were some papers, a telegram, and dozens of $100 bills, reports the Tampa Bay Times.
“Just a big stack of hundreds and they just kept coming out and as I kept pulling out and they just coming out and coming out,” he said.
Colla was faced with what many would call a very tough choice.
“I couldn’t convince myself to keep it. I knew somebody somewhere was really going to miss this, and I thought, ‘You have to do the right thing,’” he said.
“I figured it has to be important to somebody, it has to be,” he said, according to WIVB. “There was stuff going in my head as to what are the legal ramifications for me to keep this or whatever but my moral obligation and integrity says you’re going to have to return it.”
That’s exactly what he did.
After dropping off his grandchildren and scouring the papers inside the bag for clues, Colla began to search for the bag’s rightful owner, the Times reports.
“I was a little nervous at first, because I didn’t know who I might find,” he said. “I mean, who carries around that kind of money?” Colla said [Author's note: actually, that's a very good question].
Colla drove to an address listed on one of the documents. No one was home. He then found a phone number and called. A “frantic” woman answered and was relieved to hear Colla’s story.
Apparently, distracted by car seats and diapers, the woman’s husband had left the briefcase on top of their car and didn’t realize it until after the bag was long gone.
“She was so excited when I told her I found it,” Colla said. “Her husband had been out retracing their steps.”
The woman offered no reward, and Colla didn’t ask for one, the Times reports.
Who is Frank Colla?
Colla is a retired UPS worker who works part time as a security guard in Hillsborough County Traffic Court in Tampa, FL. He is also a veteran of the reserves for the Florida Highway Patrol and Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.
Ethics and honesty have always been professional requirements, he said.
“He’s an extremely honest man,” said Bill Foster, a Traffic Court hearing officer who was “stunned” when he heard Colla’s story.
“He probably makes $10 an hour — if that,” Foster said. “And for someone, anyone, to find that kind of money and give it back? That’s rare.”
(H/T: The Consumerist)
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Comments (115)
Frodo RinosBane
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:21pmSo, you see? Honor is not dead. Men and women of character really do exist. If we are not, it’s time to join the new legion of righteousness.
Report Post »AvengerK
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:33pmI would return it but via the police department. I‘d be a lot more suspicious of finding that kind of money and would want the police to handle it’s disposition.
Report Post »Detroit paperboy
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:53pmGood for him !!!! Its the right thing to do……
Report Post »hidden_lion
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 5:39pmProbably drug money. The guy would be killed if this man didn’t return it.
Report Post »Secret Squirrel
Posted on February 2, 2012 at 11:28am.Conscience is doing the right thing when no one is watching.
Report Post »Good job Frank!
thekuligs
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:21pmHow could you not return it? I‘d be haunted for the rest of my life if I didn’t.
Report Post »vedy1954
Posted on February 1, 2012 at 11:06amI wonder if she will lose any sleep over not giving the guy something for his trouble.
Report Post »JQCitizen
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:19pmGREAT STORY!!! See, Mark Levin and Glenn Beck are RIGHT! You don’t find much of this kind of Integrity in WASHINGTON, now days! So rather than follow our leaders of the NO MORALS CLIFF; WE must Lead and Teach Washington that WE ARE BETTER, and DEMAND BETTER!!!
This man just made a good start:)
Report Post »Gary Fishaholic
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:52pmWell said can you imagine if one of the OWS crowd found it? I don’t think we would be reading about it except maybe that someone lost it.
Report Post »cranberry
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:18pmOf course you return it. What a question.
Report Post »AmericanBumpkin
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:39pmwould you? seriously think about it: you work part time making next to nothing in an economy that is quickly swirling down the drain, and you happen upon a bucket-load of cash. you personally may or may not be in a position of financial trouble, or you are concerned about how to put the next meal on the table if you lose your job. this is a rhetorical question of course. =)
Report Post »i applaud this man for doing the right thing. he did something i honestly dont know if i or about 9/10s of the people on here would do if we were in his shoes, despite that some would trumpet that their moral compass is working just fine, when people are desperate they will do what they can to survive.
GhostOfJefferson
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:52pmThat’s one vote of situational ethics for Bump, with an “everybody else would do it” thrown in for justification.
The 1960′s forward have done a lot of damage to our values it appears.
Report Post »AmericanBumpkin
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 4:35pmjeff i normally agree with you on just about everything you’ve posted, but i dont agree with the “everyone else” comment. like most people on here, when faced with that situation, i dont know if i could bring myself to find the owner of a briefcase with $8k in it. i think i would be scared to keep it just because there would be no way of knowing who owned it, and i think i would either turn it in to the police station or just driven away from it. the fact that this guy went on his own to search for them is impressive. the fact that it belonged to what apparently is average joe and his family is pure good luck. it could have very well been a kingpin drug lord, a mafia member, a currupt polititian- i could go on. i think anyone with half a brain would think first “omg thats a ton of cash!“ then ”somthing about this is wrong, i shouldnt be holding this.” i’m looking at it from that type of perspective… i think your looking at it from the jackpot idea.
Report Post »btw i havent been able to keep up with blaze very well i’m glad to see you are still on here. you are one of my fav comentors to read.
TulsaYeeHaw
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 10:33pmActually, had it belonged to mobsters, and HE FOUND THEM to return it, they probably would have been rather grateful (because it would’ve been their asses). Just saying :)
Report Post »cessna152
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:15pmHow do we know there wasn’t $108,000 in there and he returned $8,000? Kudos to ya’ pal…
BTW,I am sure Obama and company will arrest you for being a responsible, moral adult….then they’ll take the money.
Report Post »Angel
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:37pmI’m sure the owners would have complained if there had been 108,000 and only got back 8,000…they would have let it be known some was missing:-)
Report Post »momrules
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:13pmWould I return it? Yes.
Report Post »grandmaof5
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:13pmWow, this was a great story up until the end. Even is she had offered $10.00 for time and trouble, Mr. Colla probably wouldn’t have taken it, but to not offer anything is sad. I hope she at least offered an explanation. It was Tampa’s Mardi Gras this weekend and the city was crowded, so she is very lucky to have gotten that brief case back.
Report Post »JRook
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:10pmIs there even a question that you return it.
Report Post »rangerp
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:17pmI would bet my pay check that he is also a conservative.
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:20pmNo. I’m not entirely certain I understand the question that the story is trying to provoke discussion on, honestly. You either believe and practice right and wrong, or you say you believe in right and wrong and are a hypocrite, or you simply do not believe in right and wrong (subjectivist).
Report Post »netmail
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:27pmIn this day and age, YES. In truth, the reward for doing the right thing
Report Post »in a case like this is the public witness of a person’s fine character.
In today’s world tho, people want to hand out medals to those who
naturally do the right thing. WHY? Because honesty and moral
character are harder to come by I guess.?? This culture is in a bad
way; no doubt about it.
Duey2000
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:09pmIf there is a briefcase of 8,000 then who is to say that the person wouldn’t have reported it stolen. You end up with it, police pull you over for a traffic violation. Boom. You go to jail for a couple of years for grand theft larceny. The man was also probably thinking about the risk involved in taking that kind of money or keeping the briefcase.
I’m ashamed to admit that even with the risk, I don’t know that I would have returned the money. That’s alot and for some people, times are tough. Depending on your situation some people would rationalize it some how (like I just did) and do the wrong thing…
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:19pmSo are you saying that you subscribe to situational ethics/subjectivism?
Report Post »Viper1
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:00pmCongratulations to this honorable man! Right now my wife and I are struggling and we don’t have two pennies to rub together, but we were both raised this way and I couldn’t imagine not returning it. It didn’t belong to the person that found it so returning it was the Christian thing to do. Maybe we feel this way because we were raised in the south but I hope it is not just down here!
Report Post »Anonymous T. Irrelevant
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:59pmMy father-in-law lost a sum of money he had in an envelope. It was the payroll for his employees. He put the envelope in his lap while he was driving and forgot about it when he got out to run another errand. Nobody returned it. It’s so frustrating that there are that many dishonest people, even in small towns. This man did the right thing. Not only that, but he set an example for his children and grandchildren and there is NO replacing that. It warms my heart to see that there are still people out there who do the right thing without incentive. Integrity is doing the right thing, even if nobody is watching.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:04pmHe pays his employees in cash?
Report Post »JRook
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:10pm@Gonzo Oooops
Report Post »Anonymous T. Irrelevant
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:10pmNo, he was on his way to deposit it in the bank. Sorry, I went on and forgot to add that part in.
Report Post »grandmaof5
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:17pmANONYMOUS, that was my husband’s favorite quote to the kids when they were growing up. Thanks for reminding me.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:25pmGotchya Anon.
Report Post »tirepitstop
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:56pmI would have returned it, because karma is a bit@h. that money could have eventually hurt you or someone you love.
Report Post »tirepitstop
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:41pmAfter reading some of the other coments, no ones business why there was so much money. I’m self employed, and sometimes carry large sums of cash, but at the same time, there is a 9mm in my other pocket. I am however surprised there was not a reward, or at least one offered?
Report Post »DeweyBueno
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:55pmYes absolutely but I do have to say I would have called the party as well as the law to make sure it was clean money. $8000.00 in a briefcase could be legit or dirty. I would also feel an obligation that if the wife did not mention what the money was for in her hysteria that something was up.
Even in financial transactions money must be traceable.
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:07pmWholly disagree with your last sentence. It‘s none of yours or anybody else’s business how others spend money or how much money they carry. The very notion that it’s somehow your business is an artifact of the police state conditioning foisted on us since the time of Nixon forward.
If the person answering the door is some gangster, fine, make your own decisions at that point. That doesn‘t justify tracking everybody’s financial moves. In short, mind your own business.
Report Post »Goobergregory
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:20pmI agree with Ghost. In this last few years I have come to distrust the digital systems and have used cash in several fairly large transactions. E-bay local farm equipment and the like. If we had lost a large amount of cash while going to a purchase it would make me frantic, but your returning it does not give you the right to know what I was doing with it. That is too nany like for me! I am surprised that the folks did not have the sense to reward this gentleman for his kindness and honor!
Report Post »MEANS2RESIST
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:34pmIts none of your business DEWEY if the $$ was legit or not, AND….it none of the cops business how much $$ people carry around in their personal daily business!
People like you remind me of the citizens that ratted out the revolutionary leaders to the British then herded them into the church then burned them alive.
Report Post »AmericanBumpkin
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:55pmdewey. the bank, the irs, the fed, the credit bureau (a few other i know im forgetting)…. they ALL know how much everyone is making 24/7. do we really need more noses in our business? i think not
Report Post »UBETHECHANGE
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:55pmSo proud of my fellow Tampa Bay citizen for doing the right thing!
Report Post »lynda1276
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:18pmYes, we have a lot of good, honest people here in Tampa. i left my purse in a shopping cart in a parking lot and a lady returned it .
Report Post »CatB
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:31pmHe makes one proud .. yes a VERY GOOD MAN .. btw I think most people would do the same thing .. sadly others would not :-(
Report Post »Locked
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:46pmKudos… but asking “who keeps that much money in a briefcase” is a good question to ask. I’d probably have brought it to the police. Not sure if that makes me a good person, a bad person, or just a naive person (to think that the police wouldn’t steal any).
Report Post »Philo Beddoe
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:52pmThe woman should have given him something for his honesty.
Years ago I returned a wallet to a guy which had $400.00 in it. He gave me $25.00 for returning it. To this day I know this was the correct thing to do.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:53pmLocked, I think it makes you a prudent person. Who knows who would have opened that door? There aren’t too many good citizens driving around with $8K in their briefcase.
Report Post »lukerw
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:56pmI would not even pick it up… KaBoom!
Report Post »MN NICE
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 4:17pmLUKERW, I would think twice as well, but for a different reason… Years ago, while in school, we knew of a fellow that would fill an old purse with fecal matter (of his choice), place in an intersection, sip a few brews and wait for a passerby to pick it up… Didn’t get too far down the street before pitching it out the window. Said it was strictly experimental as he was studying various human responses…
I don’t know about that, but I was more concerned that he wash his hands before handing me a beer ;)
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:43pmWho wouldn’t return it?
Report Post »AmericanBumpkin
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:41pmObama
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:48pmSorry, I was talking about Americans.
Report Post »AmericanBumpkin
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 11:23pmo ok. kathy griffith and joan rivers. kanye west. donald trump…. snoop dog… alec baldwin… nancy pelosi… the clintons…
Report Post »wait do the last two count if i consider them traitors?
Drum Man
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:42pmWell Done Sir. You can look yourself in the mirror with pride.
Report Post »lel2007
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:41pmI don’t know, I hope I would but I don’t think I could.
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:50pmHow could you not? How is this even temptation, it’s not “your” money in that situation, so you have no claim on it, and further, you know the right thing to do so you have no excuse of ignorance of morality. I don’t get it.
Report Post »USPATRIOT101
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:59pmbarack would want a $7000 finders fee. Ya know, to be fair.
Report Post »brother_ed
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:39pmI picture the owner and his wife as being George & Uncle Billy from ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ when they were searching for the money Mr. Potter “found”.
Great story… There is hope!
Good job Mr. Colla!
Report Post »bullcrapbuster
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:37pmBy returning it he kept something that money cannot buy….Gods approval and a clean concience.
Report Post »voodoolife
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:34pmAwesome! Kudos to this man!
Report Post »voodoolife
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:34pmAwesome! Kudos to this man!
Report Post »Stevsea
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:33pmGood boy Frank.
Report Post »lukerw
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:32pmA better man than Obama… who is not satisfied with his taking from everyone!
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:31pmHe made that drug dealers day!
Report Post »flanny
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 2:53pmYour posts are always so judgmental and negative.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:06pmThank you
Report Post »Locked
Posted on January 31, 2012 at 3:29pmI actually thought the same thing, Gonzo!
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