New York man finds $10,000 inside purse on subway

New York — A 63-year-old Manhattan man discovered $10,000 cash inside a forgotten purse on his commute home this week. Richard Taverna, 63, said he didn't think twice about handing over the cash to authorities, CBS New York reports.

"I noticed there was a purse sitting on the floor," Taverna said. "I figured maybe there was an address or something in there, and all I saw was a piece of paper with something Russian on it."

The purse was sitting against a wall on a northbound 1 train platform, he said. There were no MTA workers nearby, so he took it with him, hoping authorities could help find the owner.

"It's New York, I guess you never know what you're going to find," he said, adding that he took the money straight to New York police.

"There was never any question about keeping it," he said. "You know obviously it was the right thing to do."

Police said they are searching for the owner, a 50-year-old woman who reported the money missing while she was traveling to Russia. Officials called Taverna's good deed nothing short of a Christmas miracle.