Did you know the Japanese are this honest?

 A Record for the Fourth Straight Year - The Metropolitan Police Department reports that 4.5 million lost items were handed into police stations in Tokyo in 2025, a 2.0% year-on-year increase. This included ¥4.5 billion in cash, up 0.5% over the same period. The amount of cash set a new record for the fourth consecutive year, and represented 54.2% of the total cash reported lost, which was ¥8.3 billion.

The most common lost items handed into police stations were driver’s licenses and credit cards at 819,602 (16.9% of all items), followed by transit smart cards, commuter passes, and gift certificates at 471,399 (9.7%); clothing and footwear at 460,667 (9.5%); electronic devices at 403,708 (8.3%); and wallets and purses at 338,104 (7.0%).

A total of 225,236 cell phones were reported lost by the owners in 2025, equivalent to an average of 610 every day. Meanwhile, 144,381 phones were handed in to the police after they were found. Around half the phones, or 119,516, were eventually returned to their owners.