PERSONS who pocket lost property can be fined up to $1 million or imprisoned for up to four years, according to the police. If caught, those who attempt to keep lost property can be charged with larceny by finding and may or may not be fined or imprisoned, entirely at the discretion of the presiding judge.

The police named the actions of 30 year-old customs officer, Ahward Sterling, as the perfect example of how the public should try to handle such situations. Days before Christmas last year Sterling found $1.3 million in cash and cheques in an envelope outside the parking lot of BNS’ Scotia Centre, Port Royal Street, Downtown, Kingston.

Sterling called a number which was on the envelope but got a constant busy signal. Still he kept trying until someone answered. A few hours later Sterling returned the money to Glen Bromfield, proprietor of the Medallion Hall Hotel, to whom the money belonged.

Sterling drew even more adulation when he turned down a $100,000 reward from Bromfield, saying that he had done the honest thing and did not need to be rewarded. Bromfield himself revealed this astonishing fact at the 2005/06 Public Sector Customer Service Competition awards ceremony.

According to a police officer at the Constabulary Communication Network (CCN), the proper procedure for dealing with lost property is to take it to the nearest police station and to make a report. If after a period of time the property is not claimed, and after making every attempt to inform the rightful owner, then the property can be claimed by the finder.

However, according to the officer, the waiting period for the item to be claimed may vary as the value of the property is taken into consideration. Unofficial waiting periods also serve the purpose of keeping unscrupulous claimants at bay.

“The idea is to discourage persons from coming to take property that is not their own,” the officer told the Observer.