Arlington Boy Praised for Returning $2,000 to Area Restaurant

ARLINGTON, MA - A 6-year-old Arlington boy and his father are receiving well-deserved praise for finding and returning $2,000 which ended up belonging to an area restaurant company.

Jasper Dopman and his father, Erick, were walking on Medford Street when Jasper found a Leader Bank cash bag containing money and deposit slips. Erik called the Arlington Police Department to turn the bag in.

The money belonged to Tenoch Mexican Food Corp., which has restaurants in Medford, Somerville, and Boston. Police got in touch with Guadalupe Alvarez, an employee at the Medford location who confirmed she had lost the bag.

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The Dopman boys were honored Thursday at the Arlington Police Department, where they met Alvarez and restaurant owner Alvaro Sandoval. They also received Outstanding Citizen Awards and gifts from the food company.

"This situation shows the very definition of good citizenship," Police Chief Frederick Ryan said. "Jasper and his dad, Erik, demonstrated what it means to be part of a community by returning missing money to its rightful owner, and Erick imparted an extremely valuable lesson on his son. It is hard to image the panic and fear that sets in when someone loses a large amount of money for their employer. Jasper and Erick did the right thing, and I commend their actions in returning the missing money."

Jasper is a first-grader at Thompson Elementary, the same school Alvarez's son attends.

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Main courtesy photo: Guadalupe Alvarez, Jasper Dopman, Erik Dopman, Alvaro Sandoval, Chief Frederick Ryan