A Massachusetts woman got a big surprise while on a shopping trip.

Cheryl Gavazzi found a bag with thousands in cash tucked inside.

The 54-year-old was shopping at Marshalls last week in Swampscott when she spotted a Vera Bradley bag hanging on a rack and considered purchasing it from the store. She looked inside and to her surprise found over $11,000, according to CBS News Boston.

The bag also contained diapers and immunization records for several children.

Her first thought was that the bag belonged to drug dealers which made her concerned for her life.

"'This is a drug thing,' was my first thought," Gavazzi said, according to the Inquisitr. "'I'm going to get killed.'"

Gavazzi put the bag in her cart and wandered the store for around 10 minutes in the hopes the possible owner would come forward, but when no noticed she decided to turn it in to the authorities.

However, Gavazzi was late to a hair appointment and was unsure of the address of the local police station. The woman left the bag at her house and called her husband warning him not touch it till she could explain further.

Gavazzi returned from her appointment and delivered the bag to the Beverly police.

The owner was identified as a Lynn man who had the bag stolen previously in the day when he had misplaced it with his family while shopping.

As for the money, the man said it was for building a church back in his home country of Guatemala. Police verified the man's story before returning the bag.

The woman met with the bag's owner who gave her a small reward.

"He was wondering how he was going to come up with that money because it wasn't his money," Gavazzi said. "At that point, he was going to be selling his car if he had to."

Gavazzi says she returned the money because it was "the right thing to do."

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Drugs