A mystery woman is unaware that a check for $100,000 is waiting for her at Clean Bay Area, a firm in South Bay, California that recycles computers, semiconductors and laboratory equipment.
The check is for half the sales of a first generation Apple computer that she donated, which the recycling firm sold to a private collector for $200,000.
Victory Gichun, vice president of Clean Bay Area, said he clearly remembered when the woman dropped off two boxes of old electronics in April to donate to the recycling firm. She told him she cleaned out her garage after her husband died and decided to recycle some old stuff, The Washington Post reports.
When company employees sorted through the boxes two weeks later they were surprised to find an Apple I computer in one of the boxes.
The computer was one of only 200 Apple computers designed and assembled by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak in 1976. First generation Apple computers are a rare find and can sell for six digits.
Two years ago, an Apple I computer was sold for roughly $675,000. Last year, a working unit sold for $995,000 in an auction.
Gichun speculated that the woman who donated the computer was unaware of its value. As part of company policy, the proceeds for the donated items should be split in half between the company and the donor. However, the woman did not leave any contact details.
"She said, 'I want to get rid of this stuff and clean up my garage,' " Gichun told Mercury News. He asked if she needed a tax receipt, and she replied that she didn't.
Gichun thinks the extra cash might help the mystery woman, especially since her husband had just passed away. Unfortunately, without any contact information, there was no way to give her the check unless she turned up at their warehouse.
Identifying her will not be a problem.
"I remember her," Gichun said. "To prove who she is, I just need to look at her."
