Pick up or pass by: what to do if you find a wallet

— If you find a wallet, you should not take it home or try to find the owner yourself through other passengers at the stop or by name on social networks, — advises district police inspector Kiryl Kasyan of the Frunzensky District Department of Internal Affairs. — The exception is if you saw who lost the wallet.

Even if you picked up the find with good intentions, it still remains someone else's property.

The correct solution in such a situation is to quickly hand over the lost item either to the police, or to the administration of the object (if it's a store, train station, or shopping center), or to the driver (if the item was found on public transport). Then the formalities will be completed, and the owner will be able to quickly retrieve their property.

It is strictly forbidden to use bank payment cards or to take money from a found wallet for yourself. Using someone else's bank card, including linking it to electronic services, is qualified as theft of property by modifying computer information and, according to Article 212 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus, is punishable by a fine, or arrest, or restriction of liberty for 3 years, or imprisonment for the same term.

Taking possession of money, a wallet, and other property of another person, for example, a man's purse, a bag, a package, a box, depending on the value of what was stolen, entails responsibility either for petty theft (Article 11.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Republic of Belarus) or for theft (Article 205 of the Criminal Code). In the latter case, if the damage caused to an individual exceeds 2 basic units, punishment up to imprisonment for a term of up to 3 years is threatened.

Any found item remains someone else's property. The sooner it is handed over to someone who can find the owner, the greater the likelihood that the person will get back their documents and money, and you will not encounter problems.

Recently, a similar story occurred in the Frunzensky district: a 79-year-old pensioner came to a bus stop and noticed someone else's wallet on a bench. She sat down next to it and did not even try to find the owner, opened it, and took 350 rubles. She threw the wallet in the trash. After some time, the true owner returned for her forgotten wallet but did not find it in its previous place and contacted the police. Following the inspection, a criminal case for theft was initiated.

The district police officer advises: if you notice abandoned items belonging to others, report it by calling 102.

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