A woman who bought secondhand furniture at a recycling shop in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, earlier this month found ¥1.9 million in the item, and police are looking for the owner of the cash.
NHK reported Thursday night that the unidentified woman, who lives in the Hyogo city of Takarazuka, told police she found the cash in the furniture soon after she bought it at the shop and took it home.
The recycling shop staff, meanwhile, have told police they did not notice the cash when they bought it from the furniture's original owner, NHK said.
Police are looking for the owner who brought the furniture to the recycling shop, NHK said. Other media reports said police are withholding details about the furniture or the name of the shop in hopes that the original owner can provide such information to the police, helping them to identify the owner.
Under the Civil Code, ownership of the cash would be transferred to the woman who found it if no one else claims it within three months.