The True Story of the Nashville Robber Who Returned the Money

Updated August 14, 2026.

An anonymous man returned cash to Nashville’s InterAsian Market and Deli in 2013 with a note apologizing for an armed robbery roughly 11 or 12 years earlier. The original headline on this site incorrectly called the business a bank and stretched the timeline to 30 years. Contemporary local reporting supports neither claim.

What the apology note said

The writer said he entered the market in 2002 or 2003, took beer and cigarettes and then displayed a gun when the register was opened. He estimated that he took $300 in cash.

In the note delivered more than a decade later, he described himself as a former drug addict trying to make amends to people he had hurt. Reports differ on whether the envelope contained $300 or $400; photographs and some national coverage described four $100 bills, while the contemporaneous Nashville Scene account said it contained the $300 he confessed to taking.

Because the surviving reports conflict, it is more accurate to say he returned at least the amount he said he stole than to present a precise “interest” calculation.

How the store responded

An unidentified messenger insisted that owner Keosavanh Xayarath receive the envelope. The owner’s son, Somboon Wu, said the family was initially wary of the unexpected package.

After reading it, the family posted the note online and publicly forgave the writer. Their response emphasized the attempt to repair harm over the money itself and expressed hope that he would find peace and stability.

Making amends is more than repayment

Returning money cannot erase the fear caused by an armed robbery. A victim may choose forgiveness, anger, no contact or another response; the person who caused harm is not entitled to a particular reaction.

Recovery programs sometimes encourage amends when doing so will not injure the victim or another person. That qualification matters. Showing up unexpectedly, identifying a victim publicly or demanding a meeting can reopen trauma. Professional guidance can help someone choose a safer form of restitution.

Why the story keeps being retold inaccurately

The event has features that invite embellishment: an anonymous robber, a handwritten confession and an unexpectedly generous response. Retellings often merge it with separate cases in which money was returned decades later.

That appears to be how a Nashville market became a “bank” and an 11-year interval became 30 years in the previous headline. Similarity does not mean separate incidents are interchangeable. A trustworthy human-interest story should name the location, date and original reporting.

Could the note reopen a criminal case?

The writer remained anonymous in published accounts, and reports did not describe a new prosecution. Whether an old offense can still be charged depends on the jurisdiction, offense and limitation rules; the note alone does not answer that legal question.

The family’s forgiveness is morally significant but is not the same as a prosecutor formally closing a case. Coverage should avoid claiming that law enforcement treated the matter as resolved unless an agency said so.

What makes the event valuable

The story is not proof that every theft has a neat redemption ending. Its value is narrower: someone in recovery acknowledged a specific wrong, returned what he said he took and did not ask for publicity or praise. The family then chose to share a message about second chances.

Bottom line

In 2013, a person who said he had robbed Nashville’s InterAsian Market about 11 or 12 years earlier sent an apology and cash. It was not a bank robbery, and it was not 30 years later. The verified version is compelling without exaggeration.

Sources

• Nashville Scene: contemporaneous local report and family response
• CNN: national report on the note and returned cash
• TIME: 2013 account

Correction note: The previous headline incorrectly identified the business as a bank and said the money was returned 30 years later. The event involved a market and an interval of about 11 or 12 years.