Airport janitor might keep $325M in gold bars found in trash

May 3 (UPI) -- A janitor who found $325 million worth of gold bars in a garbage bin at a South Korean airport might be allowed to keep the precious metal, police said.

The seven gold bars were found April 26 in a trash can at Incheon International Airport in Seoul.

The bars, which were wrapped in newspaper, are believed to belong to a Korean man who has not come forward to claim them, police said.

Investigators said the gold bars are believed to have been ditched by two men who were transporting the bullion from Hong Kong to Japan. The men are believed to have abandoned the gold because they were worried about being searched by customs.

Police said the owner must come forward to claim the gold, or else the $325 million worth of precious metal will become property of the janitor who found it under the country's finders-keepers law.

The janitor would still receive 5 to 20 percent of the gold's value if the owner comes forward, police said.

The worker will not be able to claim any of the gold or money, however, if it turns out to have been linked to criminal activities.