Suitcase with RM500,000 found in Malaysian mall car park

SINGAPORE: Police are looking for the owner of a suitcase containing more than RM500,000 (S$142,000) that was found in a shopping mall in Petaling Jaya on Mar 20 (Wednesday).

A security guard of a mall in the Damansara area found the luggage, said Selangor police chief Comm Datuk Hussein Omar Khan, at a media conference on March 21.

The police were notified at around 8 am after the security guard, a Malaysian man in his 30s, found the luggage.

The police chief added: ”Inside, it contained cash exceeding RM500,000 and the owner is still unknown. The suitcase was found in the car park area of the shopping mall.”

He also said that there were no CCTV cameras facing the area where the suitcase was discovered, but the police are inspecting the cameras that face the entrance and exit of the car park.

“I urge the person that had lost this huge amount of money to present themselves to the Petaling Jaya police station or call the police at 03-7966 2222,” he added.

However, the person who comes forward to claim the bag must show proof that they are the rightful owner.

The police chief added that a deadline for claiming the money had not yet been set, but encouraged the bag’s owners to come forward before the process is implemented to deem the money as unclaimed.

“While there is no time frame, the police will need to bring it to the attention of the public before we can bring this case to court and have it declared as unclaimed money. After that, the money will be given to the government.”

In a video published in The New Straits Times, the bag is seen to be the size of carry-on luggage and is completely full of money. The suitcase has been described in NST as coloured pink and white. The video shows gloved police officers handling the money inside the suitcase and says that the notes found inside are RM100, RM50, and RM10 bills.

The Malaysian police believe that the notes inside the suitcase are real, as opposed to counterfeit, bills, but Mr Hussein said that they will nevertheless check them with Bank Negara Malaysia.

The suitcase has also been said to be unlocked and even had no lock at all.

By Mar 21 (Friday), The Star reported that the bag has still gone unclaimed./TISG

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