UPDATE:$10,000 returned after Brink's truck drops money on Route 3

You're driving along the road when you see a bag of money fall out of an armored truck, spewing bills along the highway. Think it's your lucky day? Think again.

While hard to prove, you could face theft charges if police discover you took some of the money on the road, said East Rutherford Police Capt. Phil Taormina.

During rush hour Thursday morning, some drivers did just that after a malfunction with the back door on an armored Brink's truck caused money to fall out along Route 3 west in East Rutherford. Drivers screeched to a halt to try to grab money off the highway.

"You can be arrested for this, but the issue and the hard part is identifying who the actors are. Who picked up the money and left?" Taormina said.

Police would need probable cause to search someone's home or car for the money and would need to be able to prove the person took it. The amount taken would determine the degree of potential charges.

"It would be like theft of mislaid goods," Taormina said. "The truck was parked on the shoulder and two armed guards, Brink's employees, were trying to gather the money."

Walking down the street and finding a $10 bill laying on the ground is one thing. But since the Brink's employees were present and could be seen gathering the money, those who grabbed the cash have no claim on it. The money belongs to Brink's while it is in transit, he said.

Bottom line? If you picked up money on Route 3 Thursday, you should return it to Brink's, Taormina said.

"They would have a duty to give the money over," Taormina said.

Detectives are investigating the incident by scouring through photos and videos posted to social media and video surveillance from New Jersey Department of Transportation cameras posted along the highway. Taormina said police will try to look for anything that would be distinguishing about the people and cars that stopped.

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It's unknown how much money is missing from the trucks and Brink's is doing a full audit of the bag to try to determine what is gone, said Taormina. One of the biggest challenges is the amount of people who travel the highway.

People stopping in the middle of the road Thursday also caused property damage. There was one accident on Route 3 west when someone stopped to gather some money and there was also an accident on Route 3 east. Taormina said people on the opposite side of the 12-lane highway were jumping the divider to try to snag some of the cash.

By 6 p.m. at least $7,000 was brought in by several people, said East Rutherford police Sgt. Tammy Abboud.

Police ask for anyone with information or videos of the incident to call them at 201-438-1065.