MBTA officials say it appears they found who dropped an envelope stuffed with more than $1,100 on a Belmont-bound trolley and was returned by the driver, who told the Herald he didn’t think twice about being a good Samaritan.
T spokesman Joe Pesaturo said officials have been in touch with Cambridge Savings Bank, which reported that a man who withdrew money yesterday but later returned to the bank saying he had lost it appears to be the same one who forgot a bank envelope on the seat of a Route 73 trackless trolley heading from Harvard Square to Belmont.
The stash of cash — $1,125 worth, according to driver Kevin White — matches the amount the man had reported losing, though as of this afternoon T police still had custody of the money and were awaiting word back from the bank, Pesaturo said.
White said he was driving his regular route around 4:45 p.m., when a female passenger exiting at Cushing Square handed him a bank envelope she said was left on the seat next to her.
White contacted the control center, and handed the cash in at the end of the first of four remaining trips, hoping that someone would board the trolley again asking about the lost cash.
No one did, and when he returned home last night, he called into his supervisors to see if anyone had claimed it. He again held out hope this morning someone would come forward.
“I just wanted to make sure whose ever it was got it back,” White, 48, said in a phone interview. “The amount of money, it was either someone’s payment for an expense or rent or something … It’s not something to play with.
“I look at it this way,” he added. “If lost that amount of money, I would hope somebody would do the same thing for me. I wouldn’t want to take a meal out of somebody’s mouth or have their electricity shut off because I took the money they lost. It’s nice knowing it’s being returned to the rightful owner.”
T spokesman Joe Pesaturo said a “lost and found” case involving such a large sum is rare, and Transit police are only involved because of the staggering amount. The vast majority of items left behind on buses and trolleys are kept at MBTA bus garages, where people can claim them, Pesaturo said.
The actions by White and the unidentified passenger drew the praise of MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott, who said in an email to a supervisor: “Great integrity and overall customer service. Please extend sincerest appreciation!”
White said it’s the first time in the two-plus years with the T that someone’s handed in cash. His only concern at this point is that the man get his money back.
“If he says thanks, (I’d say), ‘I’m doing my job,’” White said.
