Croatian man finds lost wallet with interest after 14 years
A man has celebrated an unexpected windfall after his lost wallet was returned 14 years later, with hundreds more than the original amount inside.
Ivica Jerkovic, who lives in the village of Donja Moticina, Croatia, claimed he had just over $1,000 inside his wallet when it mysteriously disappeared in 2001, according to reports.
He had withdrawn the money from his bank account to pay for roof repairs on his house.
Mr Jerkovic, who is aged in his fifties, thought he may have lost the wallet while attending a party or when he was driving a friend to hospital.
After searching for it for several weeks, he finally gave up, thinking it was lost forever.
Then last Friday, years after its disappearance, Mr Jerkovic received a package in the mail, which contained his wallet with the missing cash, plus $500 interest.
"First I thought that someone was joking with me so I went to check whether the money was real," he told Croatian newspaper 24 Sata.
Mr Jerkovic believes the person who found the wallet, and eventually returned it, may have had financial problems.
"I believe that this money saved him and for years he was calculating how much he should return to me,” he said.
“Otherwise, I don't know why he would keep the wallet for all those years.
"I call on him to contact me.
“He is the best personal banker in Croatia.”
The identity of the sender remains a mystery.
National news break – April 14
