Joe Ellis of Murfreesboro can be found almost every day rummaging through the convenience store's Dumpster, Maulik Patel, Speedy Mart's manager, told ABC News.
"Once I found $15," Ellis told ABC News affiliate WKRN in Nashville.
Ellis told WKRN that he found the $100 bills in a small plastic bag, along with three deposit slips, with no name on them.
"I turned it in to the people, the two guys that work there, and I told them about what happened and I gave them the money and he was counting it out, one of the guys in the store. He said it was, I don't know, almost ... $4,000."
"When he dropped it [off] to me, I couldn't believe it. He said he found it in the Dumpster last night and dropped it off here and said if there is anyone looking money, you can give it to them," Patel told ABC News.
After seeing the money, Patel said he immediately called the police so that they could search for the money's rightful owner.
Ellis told WKRN that he thought about keeping the money but ultimately wanted to do the right thing.
Police located the owner of the money money Monday.
"He was cleaning his car out, and he accidentally threw it [the money] away," Ellis told WKRN.
As a reward for finding the money, and not keeping it, the owner gave Ellis $400.
"A lot of customers come into the store and think it's unbelievable. When I told them what happened, they say that it's unbelievable, because in this day not many people would turn in all that money," said Patel.
Say what? "He was cleaning his car out, and he accidentally threw it [the money] away,"
Either he is extremely stupid or something is fishy here. Why 3 deposit slips? Why all $100 bills? Exactly how rich is this guy who carelessly throws out $3800? He decides to clean his car out before making the deposit? Obviously the money is meaningless to him or he would have deposited it first before deciding to clean his car out. This story is just full of disbelief.