Cash flows free at men's rooms in Japan

TOKYO (Reuters) - Packages containing 10,000 yen ($82) bills have been found this week in men's toilets at government offices throughout Japan, baffling officials as to why and who would do them such service.

Most of the bills were accompanied by a hand-written message saying: "Please use them for disciplining," local officials said.

"The first thing that I thought was that someone must have misplaced it so that I have to report it right away," said an official working at the Saitama Prefectural government near Tokyo.

Public broadcaster NHK said cash totaling some 4 million yen had been found in men's rooms at local government offices in 18 prefectures.

The governments have handed the money to the police, but unless someone claims the cash within six months it will be given to those who found it.

($1=121.63 Yen)