Ben and Jackee Belnap had spent many months saving money to pay back his parents for fronting cash so they could have University of Utah football season tickets.
The Holladay, Utah couple were all ready to pay them back last weekend, KSL TV reported.
Then fate intervened in the form of their two-year-old son Leo.
They had saved US$1,060 in total, keeping it in a white envelope, according to ABC 7.
Then, suddenly, it was gone.
The Belnaps searched their home. Ben was looking in the trash when Jackee said, “I found it.”
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There was the money — in pieces, in the shredder, after Leo had put it through the blades.
Naturally, they weren’t happy — but they also found the whole situation hilarious.
“Most people they say, ‘Oh a kid drew crayon on the wall or something,” Ben told ABC.
“I’ve never heard of a kid shredding a grand.”
Shredded money? There’s a government department for that
The Belnaps may yet retrieve their cash, however, according to CNN.
The U.S. Department of Treasury has a Mutilated Currency Division.
They can send the money there, where staff can put it back together.
It may take some time before it’s returned to them, however.
“I called the guy the next morning and he said, ‘Oh, we might be able to help you here,’ and I was shocked,” Ben told KSL TV.
“He said, ‘bag it up in little Ziploc bags, mail it to D.C., and in one to two years, you’ll get your money back.”
The money may be in pieces, but the parents are keeping a sense of humour about the situation.
“We didn’t know what to do and then I broke the silence and then I’m like, ‘Well, this will make a great wedding story one day,” Jackee told KSL TV.