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Curse? Gardener didn't live to enjoy cash he found
Chicago Tribune ^ | Jul 4, 2013 | Lisa Black

Posted on 07/04/2013 8:09:25 AM PDT by KeyLargo

chicagotribune.com

Curse? Gardener didn't live to enjoy cash he found

By Lisa Black

Tribune reporter

6:50 AM CDT, July 4, 2013 Advertisement Click here to find out more!

The death of a McHenry County man, just days before he was to collect some of the $150,000 he found in his garden, is causing some to wonder if his elderly neighbor was right all along.

She said the money was cursed.

Wayne Sabaj, 51, was an unemployed carpenter when he reported finding the bags of cash while picking broccoli in August 2011. He was due to enter into a settlement in court on July 11 that would have split the windfall between him and the neighbor, said his lawyer, Robert Burke.

The neighbor, Delores Johnson, whose daughter had also made a claim for the money on her behalf, also died before the mystery was settled. Johnson, who had dementia and died in December at 87, told her daughter that "she had gotten rid of the money because it was cursed," said Burke, quoting court records.

"Apparently, she was right. The money is cursed," Burke said.

Sabaj died of complications related to diabetes at his home Monday night, according to the McHenry County coroner. Sabaj's son found him, Burke said.

Sabaj's father, learning of his son's death, suffered cardiac arrest that same night and remained hospitalized Wednesday, Burke said.

(Excerpt) Read more at chicagotribune.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: Illinois
KEYWORDS: cash; curse; found; money
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To: autumnraine

Thanks. All I remember is the scene where he talks about shooting turkeys :-)


21 posted on 07/04/2013 10:37:52 AM PDT by rabidralph (Gray State Movie)
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To: Pajamajan
Maybe the IRS will take the money.

Fixed it.

22 posted on 07/04/2013 1:42:49 PM PDT by Rodamala
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To: DManA

If she had dementia, her family really should not have been letting her manage her own money. I bet they only became interested in her affairs when they found out they might stand to lose their inheritance.


23 posted on 07/04/2013 7:38:19 PM PDT by Boogieman
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To: Boogieman

It sneaks up on people. I visited my mother every day but didn’t catch how much she’s slipped until she was evaluated. They asked her to draw a clock. All the numbers were backwards.


24 posted on 07/04/2013 7:40:44 PM PDT by DManA
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To: DManA

Yes, I suppose that is true. Well, assuming my neighbor didn’t have dementia, if he buries something on my property, without my permission, and without paying me rent, it’s mine.


25 posted on 07/04/2013 7:46:34 PM PDT by Boogieman
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To: Boogieman

All this is hypothetical and assuming what the story says is true ( always a shaky assumption), but I think the dementia is the crucial point.

I suppose it could be dirty money, but in that case I wouldn’t want to touch it with a 10 foot poll. Other than that I can’t think of a reason, except organic brain damage, someone would do such a thing.


26 posted on 07/04/2013 7:50:49 PM PDT by DManA
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To: DManA

“I suppose it could be dirty money”

Well if it wasn’t dirty before they buried it in the garden... *rimshot*


27 posted on 07/04/2013 7:54:03 PM PDT by Boogieman
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