Cash of 110 million won found inside a used refrigerator... Owner located through envelope memo

A used kimchi refrigerator containing more than 100 million won in cash was found in Jeju.
[Photo by Jeju Western Police Station]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] A used refrigerator containing over 100 million won in cash was discovered in Jeju, drawing public attention, and the police revealed that they found the owner by using the hospital envelope in which the money was stored.

Kang Kwonwook, an investigator at Jeju Western Police Station, explained the investigation process regarding the 2,200 bills of 50,000 won found in the used refrigerator on August 6 during CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyunjung's News Show' on the 4th.

Earlier, Jeju Western Police Station announced on the 28th of last month that they had found the owner of the 110 million won attached to the bottom of a kimchi refrigerator purchased secondhand by a Jeju resident, but confirmed that the owner had already passed away.

Investigator Kang, who was in charge of the investigation, said in the interview, "When looking at the used refrigerator, bundles of cash and envelopes were tied together and attached underneath," adding, "They were attached to the surface with flooring material."

He continued, "Neither the seller nor the reporter initially noticed it," and explained, "Since the refrigerator was an old model and not level, it was thought to be a tool temporarily installed to adjust the leveling."

Kang confirmed that the refrigerator had circulated in Seoul for about a year before being moved to Jeju. He also mentioned that during the investigation, they checked all nearby CCTV footage but found no clues, which made the situation difficult.

He then revealed that the envelope containing the cash was the decisive clue to identifying the owner. He said, "The cash was inside a large hospital envelope," and "There was a note written on the envelope, and there was also a medicine envelope."

Based on this, Investigator Kang judged that the cash owner was likely a hospital patient. He explained, "Through the hospital written on the envelope, we obtained a list of patients discharged on the date noted in the memo," and "By tracking patients who visited the pharmacy and were discharged from the hospital on that date, we narrowed down the range."

He added, "The owner was a woman in her 60s living alone in Seoul, who had carefully saved insurance money and proceeds from selling some assets, storing it under the refrigerator," and confirmed, "It has now been confirmed that she has passed away."

Furthermore, Investigator Kang said that the owner’s family was surprised and expressed gratitude upon hearing the news. He also added that the initial reporter may receive a reward between 5% and 20% of the found amount, ranging from 5.5 million to 22 million won, according to the Lost Property Act.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.