Armored Truck Crashes: I Found Money, Can I Keep It?

If an armored truck carrying a bunch of money overturns on the highway and sends currency flying everywhere, is it legal to grab the cash you can?

Sure, it may seem tempting, but authorities say it's not the best idea to take the money and run.

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A Loomis armored truck approaching a traffic jam overturned on I-496 near Lansing on July 5, 2023, after Michigan State Police say it clipped another vehicle and ran off the highway. The driver and passenger in the armored truck reportedly sustained minor injuries. Bags of cash and coins were dumped out of the truck and into the ditch, but in this case, money did not go flying everywhere.

But what if it had?

Is It Legal for Me to Keep Money I Found After an Armored Truck Crash?

Chapter 434 of Michigan Compiled Laws deals with Lost or Unclaimed Property. Section 434.22 is the particular passage that addresses the duty of a person finding lost property.

Sec. 2.

(1) A person who finds lost property shall report the finding or deliver the property to a law enforcement agency in the jurisdiction where the property is found.

Further, Section 434.24 states that "all property of major value shall be returned to the legal owner when the law enforcement agency is reasonably satisfied of that ownership."

Basically, if you find something of value that doesn't belong to you, Michigan law says you're bound to turn it in to authorities. That would include cash dumped on the roadway in an unfortunate armored truck mishap.