PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN/NEXSTAR) – A man who admitted to throwing a substantial amount of cash from his car window told Oregon State Troopers he wanted to “gift the money” to others, police said.
Troopers with the Oregon State Police (OSP) responded to a portion of Interstate 5 in Eugene on Tuesday around 7:30 p.m. after receiving calls that motorists were stopped and gathering cash that had been “floating” on the side of the road, OSP said in a statement provided to Nexstar.
They later learned that a driver named Colin Davis McCarthy, 38, was responsible for dispensing the cash — reportedly in $100-bill denominations — along the interstate.
“McCarthy told Troopers he wanted to gift the money, which he estimated at $200,000, however there wasn’t really a way to confirm how much money was ‘gifted,’” the OSP said.
Police say McCarthy agreed to stop dispensing cash along the street to prevent further traffic backups or accidents.
The OSP added that troopers were unable to find any remaining cash along the road during both nighttime and daytime patrols (“Motorists did a thorough job of gathering the loose money,” they said) and cautioned drivers to refrain from trying to find any themselves.
“OSP is urging the public to avoid the temptation to go looking for money along the highway. These searches create a hazardous condition and put both the searchers and motorists at risk,” the OSP wrote.
McCarthy has not been charged with anything “at this time,” police said.
Police told local outlet KEZI, however, that they had been in contact with one of the driver’s family members, and this person claimed the money was not all his but came from a shared account. The family had also reportedly asked that anyone in possession of the cash take it to the Oregon State Police to be returned.
