Purse with $1,800 returned with cash

BUFFALO, N.Y., Feb. 22 (UPI) -- A New York state woman who tracked down a woman to return a lost purse said the good karma from her deed did not stop her from being hit by a car.

Jessica Wieczorek, 26, manager of the Coffee Culture cafe on Elmwood Street in Buffalo, said she found the purse Feb. 11 when it was left behind by a customer and used a Sam's Club card inside and Google to find the phone number of the owner, Lidia Couzo, The Buffalo News reported Wednesday.

Couzo said she was overjoyed to get her purse back, especially since she had just cashed a $1,800 check and the money was inside.

"I think it's amazing," Couzo said. "That just shows you the type of people we have here. In an economy that has people reeling, to me this was significant."

Wieczorek was rewarded by Couzo, but she said the deed did not earn her enough good karma to avoid being struck by a car late last week on Elmwood Street. The incident left her with a broken leg.

"It just happened," she said. "It was an accident."