Donation of 500,000 Won from 5.8 Million Found in Gupabal Station Restroom for Local Children

Over 5.8 Million Won Found in Handbag at Line 3 Gupabal Station Women's Restroom by Cleaning Staff, Reported Immediately
Owner Expressed Gratitude with Intention to Give 500,000 Won in Cash... Multiple Refusals Followed by Lost Contact, Causing Dilemma
After Much Consideration, Donated to Local Children's Center Hoping to Help Children Even a Little

On the 14th of last month, Kim Chang-dong, the stationmaster of Gupabal Station (right in the photo), who donated 500,000 won left by a lost child, visited the Jingwan Children's Community Center near Gupabal Station, along with officials from the Jingwan Children's Community Center.

At around 7:20 a.m. on the 11th of last month, two janitorial staff cleaning the women's restroom at Gupabal Station on Subway Line 3 discovered an unfamiliar handbag.

When the two picked up the handbag, they were surprised to see that it was filled with cash.

The bag contained approximately 5.8 million won, consisting of about 100 bills of 50,000 won, around 40 bills of 10,000 won, and about 10 bills of 1,000 won.

The two immediately went to the station's Customer Safety Office and handed the handbag to the station staff. The station staff promptly reported to the nearby Jingwan Police Substation that someone had lost a handbag full of cash and that it had been found at the station. Two police officers visited the Customer Safety Office, confirmed the amount of cash with the station staff, and took the bag back to the substation around 8 a.m.

About 15 minutes later, the police delivered the good news that the handbag had been returned to the elderly couple who lost it. They were able to contact the owner immediately after seeing the owner's name and contact information written in a hospital appointment notebook inside the bag.

The elderly couple asked the police how the bag was found, then came to the station to express their gratitude and offered a bundle of bills amounting to 500,000 won, about 10% of the lost amount, as a token of thanks.

The stationmaster and staff at Gupabal Station said they were just glad the item was found and, while grateful, they had only done their duty and could not accept any reward as public institution employees.

A small dispute ensued for a while between the couple who wanted to give a reward and the staff who refused to accept it. Eventually, the couple left the station after insisting the money be accepted, and later became unreachable by phone.

Unable to return the money, the Gupabal Station staff immediately reported the matter to the corporation’s audit department and consulted on how to handle it. The audit department advised that if the money could not be returned, donating it to the local community would serve the public interest.

Three days after the incident, on the 14th, the Gupabal Station staff visited the Jingwan Children’s Community Center located right in front of Exit 2 of Gupabal Station and donated 500,000 won.

Kim Chang-dong, stationmaster of Gupabal Station at Seoul Metro, said, “After much consideration, we donated in the corporation’s name hoping it would help children even a little, but this donation is essentially the same as if it were made by the owner who lost the money, so it feels a bit embarrassing. We will continue to do our best to ensure the safety and convenience of all customers using Gupabal Station.”

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