He was asked—may Allah have mercy on him:

Some pilgrims encountered Bedouins who had waylaid people and taken their belongings. The robbers fled, leaving behind their camels and the stolen goods. Is it lawful to take the camels belonging to the robbers and the goods they stole, or not?

He replied:

Praise be to Allah. Whatever they took of the pilgrims’ property must be returned to them if possible. Such property is treated like lost property: it must be publicly announced for a year. If its owner comes forward, it is returned to him; otherwise, the person who recovered it may spend it, provided that he remains liable to reimburse its owner. If he loses hope of finding its owner, he should give it in charity, and it should be used for purposes benefiting the Muslims.

The same applies to all property whose owner is unknown: property wrongfully seized, borrowed articles, deposits entrusted for safekeeping, people’s property recovered from robbers, or belongings people have left behind. All such property is to be given in charity and used for purposes benefiting the Muslims.

He was asked—may Allah have mercy on him:

When the Tatars came, people fled before them, leaving behind animals and household goods made of copper and other materials. A Muslim took these into his keeping, and a long time passed without any owner coming forward