Garbage man finds, returns $400,000 wedding ring in Missouri

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. -- A Chesterfield, Missouri, couple is thanking its trash company after losing and finding their 12.5 carat wedding ring worth $400,000, KNOV-TV reports.

By the time Carla Squitieri realized she really had lost her wedding ring, it was too late.

The ring was already on a trash truck operated by Meridian Waste Services, LLC. Carla and Bernie Squitieri called the trash company, which told them the truck was on its way to the landfill.

The couple convinced Meridian to divert the truck to a facility in O'Fallon, Missouri, where the Squitieris soon found themselves staring up at a giant heap of trash.

Operations manager Joe Evans for Meridian Waste Services said he left his post at Bridgeton and drove to O'Fallon to help. Eventually, they found it less than half an hour after the group started looking,

Evans found the ring and wedding band - nestled inside a bag of the couple's trash.

The couple was impressed with Evans' honesty, saying he could've easily slipped the ring into his pocket instead of turning it in.