He lost his wallet with $900 inside—then a mysterious note appeared in his mailbox: “Call me at this number”

Losing a wallet is always frustrating, especially when it contains a significant amount of money. That’s what happened to Alain Merrou, a resident of Marseille, in December 2020, just a few days before Christmas. The story, which he shared in the “Letters to the Editor” section of the French newspaper Ouest-France, had an unexpected and heartwarming ending.

It all began in the industrial area of Aubagne, on the outskirts of Marseille, where Merrou had gone with his wife to do some shopping before traveling to Le Pouliguen on France’s Atlantic coast to spend the holidays with his son-in-law’s family. After paying at a car dealership by card, he went to a nearby supermarket. It was there, when trying to pay in cash, that he discovered his wallet was missing. Inside, he had $870 freshly withdrawn from an ATM.

Two days later, the wallet appeared

The loss cast a shadow over his weekend. Merrou had no clear answers. Was it carelessness or theft? But the following Monday, when checking his mailbox, he was in for a surprise. Among the mail was a handwritten note: “Sir, I found your wallet at the entrance of the auto parts store. It had your voter card with your address, so I took the liberty of returning it to you. Call me at this number.”

Merrou followed the instructions and called the unknown person. On the other end of the line, a man in his forties explained that he had found the wallet and decided to return it personally. Not only that, he confirmed the money was still intact. “I checked it; there’s $870,” he said.

They met that same afternoon at a café. Merrou described the man as “charming and well-mannered,” whose honesty left him speechless. “He’s truly an honest man, with principles that are quite rare nowadays,” he said. As a token of gratitude, Merrou wanted to give him a gift, although the most valuable thing, he says, was keeping in touch with him. Since then, every January 1, they exchange New Year’s greetings.

“You always have to keep hope alive: our world is still full of honest people. It’s rare, but they exist,” Merrou concluded when sharing his experience with Ouest-France.

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