Washed-up handbag back with owner 30 years after theft
The stolen handbag was returned to its owner 30 years later
- Published
A woman has been reunited with a handbag that was stolen 30 years ago, after it was found washed up in Aberdeen.
The bag had been taken from 81-year-old Audrey Hay at her former workplace in the city.
It is thought the thief may have taken money from the bag - believed to be more than £200 - before throwing it into the River Don.
Eleven-year-old Maisie Coutts was walking at the mouth of the Don with her parents when she found the old bag containing various items on Tuesday.
Audrey Hay was delighted at the unexpected reunion
Social media helped them track down Mrs Hay.
There were pens, coins, lipstick, earrings, a key and tablets inside when the bag was found.
Maisie told BBC Scotland News: “I was just walking around with my dog and my mum and my dad and then I pointed out, 'oh, there’s a handbag'.
“I said ‘mum do you want a new handbag?’ Then I said maybe there’s something in it.
“So then we decided to open it and we saw like a credit card and we saw the name so we were really confused, who is this, are they dead, are they not?
“We got home and saw the name Audrey and I did some research about her, I figured out a bit about her."
Maisie reunited Mrs Hay with her long lost handbag
Her mum Kim said: “When we noticed the dates on the cards were all 1993 I thought oh my goodness this has been in the water a long time.
“I posted on social media and eventually we did track down Audrey.
“Audrey confirmed it was her bag and that it was stolen 30 years ago."
Mrs Coutts added: "The power of social media is incredible.”
The handbag was found at the mouth of the River Don in Aberdeen
A grateful Mrs Hay added: “It was stolen, I was out of the office, when I came back in my bag under my desk had gone. I phoned the police and they took a statement.”
She said £240 had been inside.
Of the reunion, she said: “This wasn’t expected. It’s amazing it has survived. It’s the only bag I have lost.”
Maisie, who said she was delighted to have helped, added: “It was really unexpected and crazy and kind of cool. I definitely told my friends.”