Bolesławiec police officers secured a misappropriated phone. KPP: – The victim recovered the lost documents, but the phone had found a new owner, so police officers took action to recover the misappropriated property.
As it turned out, the device in question had ended up with a resident of Bolesławiec County. He admitted that he had found the phone and—as if nothing had happened—started using it.
The man has already been charged. He faces up to one year in prison. The phone, worth PLN 1,500, will be handed over to its owner.
What does Polish law say about such a situation?
Civil Code, Article 183:
§ 1. Anyone who finds a lost item should immediately notify the person entitled to receive it. If the finder does not know who is entitled to receive the item or does not know the entitled person’s place of residence, they should immediately notify the appropriate state authority of the find.
§ 2. The provisions concerning found objects apply accordingly to items abandoned without the intention of relinquishing ownership, as well as to animals that have strayed or escaped.
In other words, a person who takes and does not return a found wallet, phone or backpack becomes the perpetrator of an offence or crime.