Shopping carts—we use them every time we visit the grocery store or retail outlet. Usually, we expect to find them empty, perhaps with a stray receipt fluttering inside. But sometimes, people find the unexpected. Get ready to be shocked by some of the most unbelievable things discovered in shopping carts.
10. Winning Lottery Tickets and Prize Check
Imagine finding someone else’s fortune! That’s what happened to a couple in Cambridge, England. In a Tesco supermarket, Richard Haslop’s wife discovered six lottery tickets and a check for $1,888. The check was made out to a Barry Levett. The couple tried to return the items through customer service but decided to track down Levett via social media. After finding Levett, they returned the tickets and prize money to him.
Levett was initially convinced that the tickets and his winnings were safely upstairs in his bedroom. When Haslop stated the tickets and check were in his van, Levett then went upstairs to verify. Naturally, Levett “came down about five minutes later, almost shaking and a bit scared” at the thought of the lost prize.
9. Boa Constrictor
Target customers in Sioux City, Iowa, got more than they bargained for when a six-foot Columbian red-tailed boa constrictor was found curled up in a shopping cart! An employee snapped photos of the reptile, later named Targeé (Tar-Zhay), and shared them on social media. Animal control took the snake to the Sioux City Animal Adoption and Rescue Center.
Local laws prohibited keeping constrictors as pets. Since no one claimed Targeé, Dan Fogell, a herpetologist, gave the snake a new home at Southeast Community College for educational purposes.
8. Dead Body
In a chilling discovery in Chico, California, police found a body wrapped in a white plastic sheet inside a shopping cart near a FoodMaxx grocery store. Security footage revealed a man, Timothy Wiechert, pushing the cart inside and leaving it by the restrooms. A store employee later moved the cart outside, where it remained for two days.
The victim was identified as 61-year-old David Niles. Wiechert, already in jail for attempted murder, was later charged with Niles’s murder. All three reportedly were homeless and living in the area near the grocery store.
7. Razor Blade
Silver Taylor’s trip to Walmart in Cedar Park, Texas, turned into a nightmare. While standing in line at the pharmacy, she was told that her hands were bleeding. She fainted due to blood loss. Paramedics discovered a razor blade lodged inside the shopping cart handle. Taylor suffered deep cuts to her hands and later sued Walmart for negligence.
6. Newborn Baby
A pedestrian in Tempe, Arizona, found a newborn baby girl in a shopping cart outside a Food City grocery store. The baby was wrapped in a blanket inside a Jonas Brothers backpack. The baby, with part of her umbilical cord still attached, was abandoned just 50 feet from a Safe Haven location. Arizona’s Safe Haven Law allows unharmed newborns to be handed off at designated locations, no questions asked. Despite the 103°F temperature, the baby was in good health.
5. Two Thousand Dollars in Cash
Army veteran Robert Sneed and his daughter found an envelope containing $2,000 in a shopping cart at Walmart in Gallipolis, Ohio. Sneed found a banking receipt along with the cash. Instead of keeping it, Sneed sought out a store manager to return the money. He also posted about it on Facebook. The money was eventually returned to its rightful owner.
4. Mouse in a Bread Bag
Michelle Hill in Hamilton, Ontario, got a shock when she discovered a live mouse inside a loaf of D’Italiano bread at Franco’s No Frills. The mouse was “munching on a slice of bread.” Hill, disgusted, asked the staff to remove the bread and shared a photo on Facebook. Hamilton Public Health Services inspected the store and found it in compliance with regulations. Loblaw Companies Ltd., apologized and promised daily inspections of bakery items.
3. Meth and Other Illicit Drugs
Deputies in Spring, Texas, found a stash of drugs in a shopping cart at an H-E-B grocery store. The abandoned “property” included 85 grams of methamphetamine, 60 grams of Xanax, Adderall, and Gabapentin. The Harris County Constable’s Office jokingly posted on Facebook, inviting the owner to claim their lost drugs at their office.
2. Box of Ashes
In Kilgore, Texas, officials found a box of ashes in a Walmart shopping cart. Officer Angela Burch investigated and identified the remains as those of Donald Krell, a Korean War veteran. Krell’s ashes had been missing for years and were supposed to be buried in Van Zandt County. Burch located Krell’s daughter in England and arranged a proper burial for him on Veteran’s Day in 2016. The city of Kilgore donated a cemetery plot, and Officer Burch received an award for her efforts.
1. Gun Wrapped in More Than Ten Thousand Dollars
Omar Allen, Kimoy McDonald, and Jovoni Coombs left behind a plastic bag in a Fairway Market shopping cart in Stamford, Connecticut. The bag contained a gun wrapped in over $10,000 in cash. After realizing their mistake, the group returned, claiming they left a phone inside. A store clerk spotted the gun, and police were called. All three men were arrested.
From lottery wins to illicit items, shopping carts can hold surprising secrets. It makes you wonder what you might find on your next shopping trip!
What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever found in a public place? Share your stories in the comments below!
