American woman scores big: Makes $80K dumpster diving find

Dumpster diving payedoff big for Tiffany Butler. The 34-year-old Texan unearthed a jackpot of pristine New Balance sneakers in a discarded bin.

Butler, who frequently goes throughdiscarded items to rescue usable goods, recently discovered a large bag of brand new New Balance trainers in a bin.

The New Balance trainers, which are valued at over $119.34 (Rs 10,000) each, were among several other new items, including water bottles, T-shirts, and socks from the same brand.

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A dedicated dumpster diver, Butler hunts for discarded items two to three times a week. She admitted that her recent find of new sneakers was a lucky break, as she'd never had any luck at that particular spot before.

Butler, who hits the dumpsters at least twice a week, explained to What's The Jam, "It's all about chance. Stores discard items unexpectedly, so you just have to be in the right place at the right time."

Butler has turned trash into treasure, she calculates that over the course of two years, she has made around $80,000 (Rs 66,99376) from reselling things she discovers in the trash.

Taking to social media, joyous Butler sharedher findings with her three million social media followers, representing the potential value of items that others might discard.

However, there have been several examples around the world where people have found cash or other valuables, like jewellery, in the trash.

In 2023, aragpicker in India's Bengaluru city stumbled upon bundles of US dollars worth $3 million (Rs 25 crore) in a pile of garbage. But after examination, policediscovered that the notes were fake.

Salman Sheikh found 23 bundles of notes in a pile of garbage on November 1 in Bengaluru's Hebbal.

"I was going about my day when I made a shocking discovery. Around noon I found a bag overflowing with cash. It was so overwhelming, I fainted. I'd never seen that much money before in my life, and I knew it wasn't Indian rupees," he was quoted saying.

(With inputs from agencies)