n a country where most people live on just a dollar or less a day, an 11-year-old boy who gathers discarded plastic bottles for money returned the equivalent of over $400 USD that he found on the road.

Gicoven Abarquez is penniless, malnourished and has never owned a pair of shoes. He works the streets of Dagupan City in northern Philippines to help his parents make ends meet. He is one of the thousands of Filipino boys, some barely in their teens, who go to school and also work collecting discarded plastic containers to sell back to recycling centers.

Walking along the street, Abarquez stumbled on a pouch sitting on Perez Boulevard. Inside, Abarquez found a veritable treasure of cash, about 18,000 PHP ($407 USD).

However, according to reports, rather than keep the money, he returned the bag to police. For his honesty, the 4th grade student was honored by the Dagupan City Police.

"My mother taught us never to own anything that is not ours," said Abarquez; the youngest of four children. His parents, Maria, a helper in a factory that makes fermented fish, and Benito, a construction worker, taught him well, he said.

"What was very impressive about this boy was that he never thought of owning the 'manna,' but immediately decided to turn it over to the police," said police chief Dionicio Borromeo. "It's really heartwarming because he has high trust in the police."

He described the boy as "malnourished, and who looks like a five-year-old because of his small body frame."

"If you see a Filipino like him, you will say, 'There's still hope in the Philippines after all'," Borromeo said.

The downside: fake claimants have flocked to the police station. But Abarquez said he remembers the man who dropped the bag as he sped away in a vehicle.

Starting last Monday, police gave the true owner 60 days to claim the bag. If not, it would be rewarded to Abarquez.

The honest child has been showered by the police and grateful citizens with a scholarship, a school bag, books, notebooks, paper, pens, school uniforms and most importantly, shoes.