JAPAN:An elderly man nearing death who wants to give something back to the world, or just a prankster? The mystery of who is leaving envelopes of 10,000 yen (€60) bills in men's toilets at government offices has been the talk of Japan this week despite the existence of far weightier issues, such as a looming election.
Since April 9th some four million yen (€23,912) has been found in men's rooms from the northernmost island of Hokkaido to the southern island of Okinawa, Japanese media say. Almost all the money has been found in government office buildings.
The bills are individually wrapped in traditional Japanese "washi" paper with the word "remuneration" handwritten on the outside in ink. Each comes with a handwritten letter in formal wording evoking Buddhist language, saying the giver hopes the money will be "useful for your pursuit of knowledge".
The wording of the letter suggests the benefactor is a man with strong religious beliefs, say some experts. Others believe he is a former civil servant trying to cheer up those in the same job, often the target of citizen anger. Still others believe the message may actually be a sarcastic reproof, telling civil servants to clean up their act.
Handwriting experts say the letters are all written by the same person, whose shaky handwriting suggests somebody elderly or seriously ill, and note that the writing has worsened over the months since the first set of bills was found.
But others think the man is a prankster who wants to create a stir while remaining unknown.
The money has been handed to the police, but if nobody claims the cash within six months it will be given to the finders.