A couple in New York City might have struck it rich when they found a safe with almost $100,000 while magnet fishing in a pond in Queens.
James Kane and Barbie Agostini were magnet fishing in Queens on Friday when they pulled out a muddy safe. They often share their discoveries on social media and told Spectrum News NY1 they were shocked to find hundreds of wet bills inside, totaling around $100,000.
They also posted a video showing the muddy safe and the soaked bills.
Kane told NY1 they had found many old safes before but never anything valuable inside. Agostini said she thought Kane was joking when he told her what was inside.
“When I saw the actual dollars and the security ribbons, I lost it,” Agostini told NY1.
The couple contacted the NYPD to check if they could legally keep the safe. Luckily, the owner of the safe, believed to be stolen, couldn’t be identified, so the authorities let them keep the safe and its contents.
The only problem was that the bills were “soaking wet” and “pretty much destroyed,” Kane told NY1. It’s unclear how the couple plans to salvage the money.
The NYPD told USA TODAY that they didn’t need to hand over the money because its value couldn’t be determined.
“Found property valued at ten dollars or more must be reported to and deposited with the police,” the NYPD said. “In this case, the value and authenticity of the money couldn’t be determined due to its poor condition.”
Kane and Agostini started magnet fishing as a hobby during the coronavirus pandemic to fight boredom, Kane told NY1.