Status: Undetermined (reported in the news, but from an anonymous source)
It sounds like an urban legend. At the end of a work day a commuter returns to his car parked at the train station in Westborough, Massachusetts, only to realize he had left it unlocked all day. Miraculously, the car is still there, despite the numerous thefts in that area. But someone has been in his car, and they've left something: a box with a white ribbon on it, placed on the front seat. Inside is a diamond ring valued at $15,000, and a note: "Merry Christmas. Thank you for leaving your car door unlocked. Instead of stealing your car I gave you a present. Hopefully this will land in the hands of someone you love, for my love is gone now. Merry Christmas to you."
This story of remarkable generosity has been
widely reported in the news. It's said to have occurred earlier this month, before Christmas. But like I said, the story has many traits of an urban legend: It fits the stereotype of the remarkable-act-of-kindness story that often circulates around the holiday time, and the name of the guy who received the ring is not known.
The
Christian Science Monitor was a bit suspicious of the story, so they did some fact checking. But all they've been able to find out is that someone did report finding the ring in their car to the Westborough police. However, the name of the guy isn't being released. So this means that the story could have happened as reported, or maybe someone, for whatever reason, reported a false story to the police (maybe they thought people would enjoy hearing a nice story around Christmas). No way to know. But if the ring ends up on eBay, my vote is that the story is definitely bogus.
Comments
However...
#1 - the car is left unlocked in a high crime area
#2 - the box is left on the seat of said unlocked car, which is parked in a high crime area.
Why didn't some other punk notice the (probably visible, and highly festooned) box?
"Hey, get out of my car!"
"I was just going to leave you this present!"
"Yeah, right, I'm calling the cops."
It turned out they stole the cash, and used the story to try to launder it.
First rule of a scam. Don't tell you story on TV where someone who knows the truth may see you.
Hmm, how can I meet some of them?