An online campaign has raised more than 34,000 euros (US$36,372) for a homeless man in Amsterdam who turned in a wallet stuffed with 2,000 euros in cash to police.
Hadjer al-Ali, 33, said his life had been turned “completely upside down,” said the funding site, which raised 34,102 euros in just one day.
Al-Ali, who has been sleeping on the streets for 18 months, can now finally arrange a rental home with the money, the site “support for the honest Hadjer” said.
The father-of-two has also received many messages from people offering him a job. One anonymous donor gave 750 euros and there have been 2,800 donations in total.
Al-Ali found the wallet at Amsterdam central station while he was “doing his rounds” looking for empty plastic bottles to exchange for cash.
Police said he turned in the wallet with “approximately 2,000 euros ... but unfortunately no identity papers or anything that would allow us to contact the owner.”
“Because we think that honesty should pay, he got a ‘silver thumb’ prize that we sometimes give to citizens and a gift voucher worth 50 euros,” authorities added.
If the money is not claimed within one year, it would go to the finder.
“I want to thank everyone so, so, so much... I can’t describe how I’m feeling at the moment... I’ve been inundated by people saying the sweetest, nicest, things,” al-Ali said in a video on Instagram.
“I can’t find the words, I don’t know what to say, I’m full of adrenaline,” he said, adding that he could rebuild his life with the money collected.
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