By Elina

A thief who dropped a winning lottery ticket at the scene of his crime has been given a lesson in honesty.His victim,who picked up the ticket,then claimed the$25,000 prize,managed to trace him,and handed over the cash.The robbery happened when maths professor Vinicio Sabbatucci,58,was changing a tire on an Italian motorway.Another motorist,who stopped “to help”,stole a suitcase from his car and drove off.The professor found the dropped ticket and put it in his pocket before driving home to Ascoli in eastern Italy.

Next day,he saw the lottery results on TV,and taking out the ticket,realized it was a winner.He claimed the 60 million lire(里拉)prize.Then he began a battle with his conscience.Finally,he decided he could not keep the money despite having been robbed.He advertised in newspapers and on the radio,saying, “I’m trying to find the man who robbed me.I have 60 million lire for him—a lottery win.Please meet me.Anonymity(匿

名)guaranteed.”

Professor Sabbatucci received hundreds of calls from people hoping to trick him into handing them the cash.But there was one voice he recognized and he arranged to meet the man in a park.The robber,a 35-year-old unemployed father of two,gave back the suitcase and burst into tears.He could not believe what was happening.“Why didn’t you keep the money?” he asked.The professor replied, “I couldn’t because it’s not mine.” Then he walked off,spurning the thief’s offer of a reward.