$3,800 Found In Dumpster And Not Pocketed Because The Man Searching For Bottles And Cans Returned The Money To Its Rightful Owner

Searching through a dumpster in Tennessee Sunday for bottles and cans leads to $3,800 instead. That same man didn't pocket the money and was able to return it to its original owner.

Joe Ellis of Murfreesboro rummaged through the dumpster that belonged to Speedy Mart. He told WKRN in Nashville that he found $100 bills inside a plastic bag with deposit slips. There was no name on the slips.

Ellis admitted he debated on keeping the money but said it was too much to hang on to. "Once I found $15," Ellis told ABC News affiliate  WKRN. He kept that $15, but said $3,800 was too much.

From there, Ellis decided to bring the money into the owner of Speedy Mart, Maulik Patel.

 "When he dropped it [off]  to me, I couldn't believe it," Patel told ABC News. "He said he found it in the Dumpster last night and dropped it off here and said if there is anyone looking money, you can give it to them."

Police were able to locate the owner of the money Wednesday.

"He was cleaning his car out, and he accidentally threw it [the money] away," Ellis said.

It seemed like an easy steal for Ellis, but he didn't take the $3,800. The owner of the money reportedly gave Ellis $400 as a reward for finding his money.

"A lot of customers come into the store and think it's unbelievable. When I told them what happened, they say that it's unbelievable, because in this day not many people would turn in all that money," Patel said.