Story By: Biljana Bozhinovska, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News 

An honest man who found over 25,000 GBP in cheques anyone could cash at the bank has been rewarded – with a shovel – by the company he returned them to.

And the irony is that Luis Spahn, a telecommunications subcontractor from the city of Rafaela in the northern Argentine province of Santa Fe who found the cheques, lives in a flat and does not have a garden to take advantage of his reward.

He was travelling to a job in the city of Santa when he noticed some dropped papers on the side of the road on Route 70.

Upon closer inspection, the 50-year-old man saw there were between 25 and 30 cheques that anyone could cash at the bank, according to local media.

Reports said the cheques’ total value was over 2 million ARS (25,485 GBP).

Spahn told local media: “I was shocked, I didn’t know what to do with all those cheques. I looked for a sign, a name or something, because the cheques came from all over the state.

“I asked a friend in Santa Fe to help and when he arrived, we noticed the cheques all came from the same company.”

The man contacted the tool manufacturing firm and reportedly returned the cheques to them.

As a reward, the company gave the honest man a shovel for his efforts.

He told local media: “A company representative asked me ‘what would you like in return, do you need any tools?’ and I said that I have all the tools I need and kindly declined.

“Then the woman said to one of the trainees, ‘go find something’ and the kid came back with a shovel!”

The shovel may be no use to him and worse still, reports said that his placement at the telecommunications company has been at risk, but he is using his moment in the media spotlight to plead for them to keep his job.

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