For the second time in a week, employees at a local business have handed over found cash to the Marysville Division of Police. Thursday, employees of the Kentucky Fried Chicken found more than $10,000, pictured above, inside a restaurant restroom. On April 27, an employee of the Avalon Theatre in uptown Marysville found more than $20,000 in the bathroom.
(Photo submitted)
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It’s a finger lickin’ mystery after thousands of dollars were found in the bathroom of a second local establishment in less than a week, this time at the local Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant.
According to a report from the Marysville Division of Police, employees at the local KFC, 839 Delaware Ave., found more than $10,000 hidden at the restaurant Thursday.
Captain Nate Sachs, with the Marysville Division of Police, said that an employee of the restaurant found the money when they went to fix what they believed was a leaking toilet.
Sachs said the manager had been teaching a new employee about cleaning the bathrooms when he noticed a toilet that was running. Before his shift ended, the manager decided to try to fix the toilet before calling for a plumber. When he lifted the tank lid, he found a bundle of cash. The manager decided to look in the other toilets and found a second bundle of cash.
Sachs said it was “an assortment” of bills.
The manager called KFC officials and employees took the money to the police station.
Officers then went to the restaurant to investigate.
Sachs stressed that police are withholding certain details like the full amount of each finding, where exactly the money was found and how it was packaged. Police kept similar information earlier this week after they took possession of more than $20,000, found at the Avalon Theatre, 121 S. Main St.
The money was found the morning after the Avalon hosted a hypnosis show. During the show, employees noticed a patron acting suspicious, loitering and going into and out of the bathroom. The next morning the employee decided to look around and found more than $20,000, split between two separate toilet tanks.
Sachs said investigators “barely got moving on the first one and now we have another one.”
Police recognize that the incidents have very similar elements.
“It is too early for us to tell if it is connected, but there are certainly a lot of similarities that we are looking into,” Sachs said. “All possibilities are possible at this point.”
He added that, “obviously, two times in our town, in a week, this was certainly something out of the ordinary.”
Sachs said investigators have confirmed that the money is not counterfeit, though he did not give the details of how that determination was made.
Sachs said the local police department has not reached out to state or federal authorities to help, but acknowledged that “as the investigation progresses, that is a possibility.”
He stressed that, “at this point, there is no crime, we are just trying to figure out what’s going on.”
Sachs said that there is no indication of anything illegal, “but at the same time, this amount of money in a public facility raises some eyebrows.”
Sachs said investigators have some information about the individual they believe might be involved with the incident at the Avalon.
“We have some thoughts about that incident, and who that person might be. We don’t know what that person’s involvement is, or even if they are involved,” Sachs said.
He said the police have no leads on the incident at KFC. Sachs said the restaurant has reported not having cameras but police are asking other businesses in the area.
Sachs said he knows there will be speculation, jokes and people checking toilets around the city.
“I would encourage people not to do that,” Sachs said. “We don’t know where this cash is coming from, what it is or who it belongs to.”
He said that if people do find a significant amount of money, “I would really encourage them to contact us.”
Sachs did say that at this point, anyone who has information should also contact police.
“You never know where the next clue is going to come from,” he said.
To read more about the cash found in the Avalon Theatre, click here.