Scottsbluff police say they recovered money stolen from a Super 8 Motel while they were still talking to the clerk who said he had been robbed.

Police say they solved the crime quickly because, when they arrived at the motel early Saturday morning, the clerk's car door was open.

Court documents say police asked 22-year-old Justin Ball if they could search his car.

Inside Ball's car, police found a Super 8 envelope filled with $570 cash stuffed in a boot.

Ball was arrested on suspicion of theft and making a false police report.

Ball had worked at the motel for about a month before the theft.