مسائل المنتخبه (Articles Of Islamic Acts) - الخوئي، السيد أبوالقاسم - الصفحة ٥٤٤ - Lost Property Found

gather, and the thing perishes, or some other person picks it up, the person who found the thing is responsible.
٢٥٨٨. If a person finds a thing which would decay if allowed to remain as it is, he should fix its price with the permission of the religious Head or hisrepresentative, and sell it and keep its sale proceeds with himself, and give the same as alms on behalf of the owner. if he is not found.
٢٥٨٩. If the thing found by somebody is with him at the time of performing ablutions and offering prayers there is undoubtedly no harm in it if his intention is tofind out its owner (and to give it to him). Otherwise, however, it falls under the category of usurped property.
٢٥٩٠. If the pair of shoes of a person is taken away and is replaced by another pair of shoes and the person who has lost his shoes knows that the pair of shoeswhich is now with him belongs to the person who has taken away his pair of shoes, and who is prepared to keep that pair of shoes in lieu of his pair of shoes which thatperson has taken away. he can keep that pair of shoes. And the same order applies if he knows that he has taken away his pair of shoes unjustly and by way of oppression. Inthat case, however, it is necessary that the price of that pair of shoes should not exceed the price of his own pair of shoes, otherwise order of unknown ownership willapply. And in cases other than these two the order of unknown ownership applies to that pair of shoes.
٢٥٩١. If a man has some property of unknown ownership i.e. its owner is not known and if the word lost does not apply to it. it is necessary for him to make asearch for its owner and give it as alms to the indigent persons when he loses all hope of finding the owner. And it is better that he should give it away as alms with thepermission of the religious Head and if the owner of the property turns up afterwards the man is not responsible.