Honest Tokyo residents turned in record US$30 million in lost cash last year

Tokyo residents turned in a record 4.49 billion yen (US$30 million) in lost cash to authorities in 2024, reinforcing Japan’s reputation for honesty even as the country faces growing economic hardships. According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, the total amount that was handed in represented an increase of 1.8 per cent over 2023. Authorities believe the rise is due to more people going out after the coronavirus pandemic subsided and a surge in foreign tourists to Japan. Broadcaster Tokyo MX reported that about 3.23 billion yen was returned to its rightful owners while 570 million yen was given to people who handed the money in. By law, anyone who finds lost money is required to turn it over to police but is able to claim a reward of between 5 per cent and 20 per cent if it is claimed by the owner. If the cash has not been collected after three months, the total sum goes to the finder. If the finder does not claim the money after an additional two months, then it goes to the local government, with Tokyo benefiting from a windfall of some 600 million yen last year. For the vast majority of Japanese, not handing in lost property would be “unthinkable”, said Makoto Watanabe, a professor of communications and media at Hokkaido Bunkyo University in Eniwa, Hokkaido. “Generally speaking, when a Japanese person finds something that does not belong to them, they put themselves in the shoes of the person who has lost that money or item,” he told This Week in Asia. “We tend to imagine how inconvenient or terrible it would be if we lost a large amount of money, a wallet with credit cards or a driving licence or other important documents in it,” he said. “For most people – and I accept that is not absolutely everyone in Japan, but for most people, they want to help out.” The largest single amount that was handed back last year to a relieved owner was 11.6 million yen, police said. They did not provide information on how or where it was lost. In total, 4.4 million items were handed in to Tokyo police over the course of the year, up 7.7 per cent and another record high. Umbrellas were among the most common items handed over to lost-and-found offices at train and bus stations across the city, with other common discoveries including documents such as driving licences and transport passes, clothing and shoes. Nationwide figures have not yet been announced for 2024, but Japanese broadcaster NHK said the total sum of money handed in across the country reached 22.8 billion yen in 2023. Wireless earbuds and handheld fans were among the most common items passed on to lost-luggage offices or police, along with shopping bags, heated tobacco devices and mobile battery chargers. More surprisingly, authorities took in 25,500 lost animals over the course of that year, including 12,700 dogs and 4,300 cats, as well as birds, turtles and even a nocturnal possum. The compulsion to be a “good citizen” and hand in a lost item had not diminished, even at a time of relative economic hardship in Japan, Watanabe said. “I think it is a cultural philosophy,” he said. “We have this need to help other people in our society, but maybe even more so when times are hard.” That mindset is reflected in how Japanese communities respond to crises. In some countries, natural disasters have led to looting or unrest when law enforcement was stretched thin. However, in the aftermath of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan’s Tohoku region, residents provided shelter to those in need and shared resources. “In Japan, that is the rational thing to do,” Watanabe said. “People here think about increasing the total wealth of their community or society by helping others. And, typically, the more difficult the situation, the greater the assistance.” He said it helped that concepts of right and wrong were instilled in children from a young age by parents, schools and the local community. However, Watanabe admitted he had also been a victim of theft in Japan. In 1998, he left a backpack in his brother’s parked car in Ibaraki prefecture, but when they returned, they found the window smashed and the bag stolen. But one incident in nearly three decades was not so terrible, he said. “I have friends from Europe come to Japan and they see salarymen asleep on the train, and they always tell me that they are amazed that no one steals their briefcases or bags,” he said. “That tells me how safe Japan is in comparison to other countries.”

Honest Tokyo residents turned in record US$30 million in lost cash last year

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}For the vast majority of Japanese, not handing in lost property would be ‘unthinkable’, one expert said

For the vast majority of Japanese, not handing in lost property would be ‘unthinkable’, one expert said