The man nervously approached the counter when the clerk motioned. He was just shy of his 25th birthday, and at the end of his rope. He lost his job a couple weeks prior, bills accumulating, a “pay or get evicted” note taped to his door just the day before. When she saw the note, his young wife had walked out, taking his young child with her. She simply had enough.
In mind of this young man, this his was his last hope. He’d come to believe this was the way to get his life back on track, to save his home, his marriage, and to remain with his young child.
He slipped the note through the window and waited.
The clerk barely flinched. She calmly triggered the silent alarm, filled a manila envelope, and slid it through the window.
He took it from her hands and quickly made his way out the door.
His car parked outside, he jumped in, and sped away.
It wasn’t long before the police arrived. Interviews conducted, fingerprints taken, the drawer inventoried, and video recordings examined.
Between the prints and license plate number, police were able to identify a suspect. Before long, a warrant was issued, then served.
It was the same young man, his prints were a match, and at this point, the poor young man was willing to cooperate.
When the envelope was located, police found a couple hundred dollars in small bills along with a couple pads of paper.
Bank records indicated that nearly $10,000 was missing from the register, police only found $400 and asked about the difference.
This, the young man could not explain. He insisted that when the envelope was opened, there had only been $400 … along with the paper.
Police concluded their search, the money still missing, the young man was taken to jail.
The young stuck to his story, even with his lawyer, but money would never be found.
After work, the clerk stopped by her parent’s place and picked up her two young kids, then headed home.
She was young herself, a single mother struggling to make ends meet. She had grown up underprivileged and hoped to make things better for her young family.
She changed clothes and spent a few minutes with her children before making dinner.
As she sat there on the floor, she watched a report on the local news about the events of her day.
The reporter noted that the suspect was caught, but emphasized that most of the money was still missing.
A wry grin crossed her face as she reached for her purse. She pulled a stack of $20 bills from her purse and counted just about $9,600.
“Kids,” she exclaimed. “You’ll ever believe what happened to me today!”