Russia (bbabo.net), - A wallet lies on the ground, cards and large banknotes stick out of it. Which one of us will pass? Probably only those who have not yet woken up. But what to do with the surging wealth next?

In Moscow, several people who took they found for themselves have already been prosecuted. What is good luck for the layman turns out to be the most common theft for the law. Is there a way to properly dispose of the find and avoid punishment?

Recently, the Second Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction considered the high-profile case of a Muscovite who found a wallet with 40,000 rubles right at her entrance. I could not resist and simply spent the money I found, and left my wallet as a keepsake. After some time, the police came to the "lucky" Muscovite. It turned out that the owner of the wallet reported the loss of a large sum. A criminal case was initiated under article 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - "Theft".

“Recent law enforcement practice is slowly but surely accustoming citizens that the thing found does not become yours by right of discovery,” Denis Khuziahmetov, head of the White Owl legal board, confirms. “Whoever thinks otherwise risks being subjected to criminal punishment.” The courts of all instances recognized that the Muscovite, who found the wallet, had violated the law. According to the Civil Code, she had to do everything to find the owner first. And claim the money only if he was not found. In this case, the court sentenced the woman to a fine of 25 thousand rubles. The punishment, though symbolic, is criminal. And besides, the spent 40 thousand still now need to be returned to the owner.

According to Moscow lawyer Ilya Gatikoev, court practice on this topic will soon be replenished. One of his clients picked up problems off the floor while trying to find his wife's phone. The woman dropped it on the platform of one of the capital's railway stations. The gadget was never found, but a plastic card was found. The name and surname of the owner was not on it. But the money, as it turned out, lay there. The man decided that since the plastic was unmarked, he could use it. I bought various little things for a total of 5 thousand rubles. But at that very time, the owner of the unnamed plastic file reported missing, and the police opened a criminal investigation into the theft.

The most surprising thing is that the phone was also found. It was picked up by a passer-by and with the help of an SMS to number 900 he bought consumer goods for 1,500 rubles. As a result, now he will also have to answer under Article 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - it threatens up to 6 years in prison.

What to do if you find someone else's thing? Civil law is adamant: the finder of the lost is obliged to give it to the owner. At a minimum, report the find to the police or to the district government. And if valuables are found in the transport, then you need to inform the driver about it. In all cases, you also need to write a statement.

As Denis Khuziakhmetov explained, if the owner has not been found within six months, then the one who finds it becomes its owner. And just the statement will serve as the basis for the transfer of ownership.

By the way, the law does not prohibit leaving the found thing for safekeeping. If the owner is found, he will have to return everything. And here the rule of six months does not apply - after all, the find has not been officially reported. This method, however, looks risky: after all, the money may turn out to be counterfeit. Or perhaps stolen. In this case, you will simply keep the evidence at home. Therefore, it is more reliable to register the find and make an appropriate inventory.

By the way

The largest amounts lost in Moscow

In 2018, an entrepreneur lost a million rubles in a shopping center parking lot. The money was in his trouser pocket and fell out when he got into the car. A guard found a huge pack and kept the money for himself. The millionaire, however, was not at a loss: he wrote a statement to the police, and the way of the missing amount was traced through the cameras quite quickly.

In 2016, a Moscow metro passenger accidentally left a package with 4 million rubles at the Marksistskaya station. The police immediately spotted the suspicious bag. It is curious that the owner remembered the loss only a day later. The police returned everything to the penny.

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