Thai honesty: It would take eight years to earn what this cabby handed back!

[webfact]

Thai honesty: It would take eight years to earn what this cabby handed back!

 

Picture: Daily News

 

Thai media was full of stories and praise for an honest Bangkok cabby who handed back 1.5 million baht worth of cash and valuables to a woman who left them in his taxi. 

 

Going on a reasonable monthly salary of 15,000 baht it would have taken the young cabby more than eight years to earn that. 

 

This would compare with a New York cabby handing back about a quarter of a million dollars!

 

Withoon Joongphan, 22, had picked up building firm executive Thanisara Atrit, 47, and a foreign companion from Don Mueang airport on Tuesday. 

 

They had a lot of luggage.

 

He took them to the Manthana housing estate on the Chaeng Wattana - Ratchapreuk road in his green and yellow cab with the plate 1 มข (mor khor) 2890 (Bangkok).

 

After they exited the cab he took another passenger to Silom which is when he noticed a Louis Vuitton bag had been left in the front.

 

The content of the bag

 

It contained 1,400,000 baht in Japanese and Thai currency and together with the value of the bag it was all worth 1.5 million, reported Daily News. 

 

After delivering his passenger to Silom, Withoon immediately went to the HQ of the FM91 radio station in the Chatujak area of Pahonyothin in northern Bangkok.

 

Soon the owner and bag and all its contents were happily united and pictures were taken for the media.

 

Thanisara said that she only realised about the missing bag when she went to pay a gardener for some work. 

 

The money was meant to be for a building extension. 

 

She rewarded the driver thanking him for his honesty and kindness. 

 

Elsewhere in the Thai media - that carried many stories about this case -  it was reported that the reward for Withoon was 23,440 baht.

 

An average annual salary for a New York taxi driver is about $43,000 according to information online. 

 

Source: Daily News

 

 

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[Matzzon]

Think it was 2 days ago one person forgot around 700k in a restaurant outside Petchabun. Today it´s 1,5M baht?????

These stories must be made up. People can´t be this stupid!

[RotBenz8888]

Lets make a scientific study. "Forget" a bag with 50 000B in 10 different cabs, and see how many are returned. Anyone want to fund 500 000, the risk should obviously zero? The result will be published in "The Journal of Media Hoax."

Edited January 15, 2020 by RotBenz8888

[steven100]

aha .... good ,  we have the honest cabbie story back up and running again.

but I think using 1,500,000 is getting a bit ridiculous .....  

come on TAT ..... get real,  what next .... 5 million   ?

[steven100]

3 minutes ago, RotBenz8888 said:

Lets make a scientific study. "Forget" a bag with 50 000B in 10 different cabs, and see how many are returned. Anyone want to fund 500 000, the risk should obviously zero? The result will be published in "The Journal of Media Hoax."

they will all be returned,  Bangkok cabbies are the most honest in the world.

[dabhand]

Presuming that they had arrived  on an international flight, I just wonder if the cash was declared when clearing customs?

[LomSak27]

Just now, Matzzon said:

Think it was 2 days ago one person forgot around 700k in a restaurant outside Petchabun. Today it´s 1,5M baht?????

These stories must be made up. People can´t be this stupid!

I am going to have to disagree! 

 

Times are tuf, what with the gold shop killer still on the loose. Time to get warm and fuzzy.

[Time Traveller]

Is Thailand the only country in the world when people who carry large sums of cash around are so absent minded and forgetful?

This seems like a weekly thing. It makes you question the legitimacy of these stories.

[Roy Baht]

It's just an internet thing. Google honest cabbie returns money. You'll find stories from the US, Australia--and of course Thailand.

 

 

[OneMoreFarang]

What would be the alternative for that cabby?

Take the money and spend it alone?

Take the money and spend it with his friends?

Hide it and maybe use it later?

The person who left that money was obviously negligent. But what would she have done when she missed the million baht? There are so many cameras these days that it's likely that that cabby would be found sometime soon. And then? He would probably go to jail if he spent any of the money which she forgot.

Realistically the cabby didn't have much choice but return it.

And then receiving a "finders fee" of 1.5%. Cheap Charly or Charlini or whatever that is called for women.

 

[URMySunshine]

8 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

What would be the alternative for that cabby?

Take the money and spend it alone?

Take the money and spend it with his friends?

Hide it and maybe use it later?

The person who left that money was obviously negligent. But what would she have done when she missed the million baht? There are so many cameras these days that it's likely that that cabby would be found sometime soon. And then? He would probably go to jail if he spent any of the money which she forgot.

Realistically the cabby didn't have much choice but return it.

And then receiving a "finders fee" of 1.5%. Cheap Charly or Charlini or whatever that is called for women.

 

I admire your would weary cynicism - he was clever enough to know he couldn't nick it. She though, should be expecting a call form the tax authorities and the requirement for another brown envelope no doubt or maybe her trip to TAT was to head them off at the pass ?

[Matzzon]

52 minutes ago, LomSak27 said:

I am going to have to disagree! 

 

Times are tuf, what with the gold shop killer still on the loose. Time to get warm and fuzzy.

And what did you just try to say?????

• Times are tuf, so that it´s quite understandable that people forget millions of baht in different places?
• The gold shop killer made me forget my cash stash in the restaurant or taxi?
• I am felt so warm an fuzzy, so I forgot everything around me and just went on my merry way?

[brianthainess]

Donkeys years ago in Delhi i left a packet of Marlboro cigs  in a tuk tuk the driver returned to the hotel and handed them in to reception. True story.

He wasn't around so he didn't get the tips.  get it? Tips. oh well please yourself's. 

[hotchilli]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

The money was meant to be for a building extension.

So why the Japanese currency if the money was intended to pay for an extension in Thailand to a Thai builder?

Surely the money would have been easily transferred using international transfer  bank to bank system.

Who walks around with that amount of cash from one country to another?

[LomSak27]

21 hours ago, LomSak27 said:

21 hours ago, Matzzon said:

People can´t be this stupid!

I am going to have to disagree! 

 

Times are tuf, what with the gold shop killer still on the loose. Time to get warm and fuzzy.

Is it that hard to figure out. Going with your last rhetorical question. Lots of bad things out there these last weeks. The people need a reaffirmation of the good things inherent in the culture. Now, I want to keep this warm and fuzzy moment going for my thursday. 

 

So no nattering nabob of negativity OK ?!

just 'Get Off My Cloud' 

[Matzzon]

35 minutes ago, LomSak27 said:

Is it that hard to figure out. Going with your last rhetorical question. Lots of bad things out there these last weeks. The people need a reaffirmation of the good things inherent in the culture. Now, I want to keep this warm and fuzzy moment going for my thursday. 

 

So no nattering nabob of negativity OK ?!

just 'Get Off My Cloud' 

Still stupid to forget that you have 700k up to 1,5M with you, and that can´t change on your cloud either. So, if you want me to go off your cloud, then just stop reply. Make sense, doesn´t it? 

[LomSak27]

Just now, Matzzon said:

So, if you want me to go off your cloud, then just stop reply. Make sense, doesn´t it?

 

You know they give you those meds for a reason. Better get back on them.  

[Matzzon]

1 hour ago, LomSak27 said:

 

You know they give you those meds for a reason. Better get back on them.  

Don´t know what you talk about, but you seem to have great knowledge regarding that part.

[BritManToo]

On 1/15/2020 at 9:41 AM, LomSak27 said:

Times are tuf, what with the gold shop killer still on the loose. Time to get warm and fuzzy.

Funny how when one Thai does something dreadful, shortly after a Cabby/waiter/et al is 'perfectly honest' with a large amount of money someone forgot.

 

It's almost as if the police/government are handing bags of money to 'low-level' Thais for them to hand back with lots of publicity.

"Look how nice we really are"

[sanuk711]

On 1/15/2020 at 9:13 AM, webfact said:

It would take eight years to earn what this cabby handed back!

Depends  whether he leaves his meter on or not................

[LomSak27]

Just now, BritManToo said:

It's almost as if the police/government are handing bags of money to 'low-level' Thais for them to hand back with lots of publicity.

"Look how nice we really are"

???????? Wait! Nooooooooo .. 

 

 

Edited January 16, 2020 by LomSak27

[LomSak27]

Just now, BritManToo said:

Funny how when one Thai does something dreadful, shortly after a Cabby/waiter/et al is 'perfectly honest' with a large amount of money someone forgot.

You can gauge how bad things have been when one of these stories pops up. The public needs re affirmation of the great goodness & mercy of society. BTW, if that don't catch that Lopburi gold shop killer soon, expect to see a lot more of these feel good shows.

[briansbiology]

she can finally afford to get her plastic nose redone! 

[Plstandby]

Seriously who the hell walk with so much money with them??? Why on earth would you do that??? 

[notasmartassknowitallfarag]

Not far off 2 months salary is a good reward. He would have been caught if he stole it. 

[samsensam]

On 1/15/2020 at 9:52 AM, Time Traveller said:

Is Thailand the only country in the world when people who carry large sums of cash around are so absent minded and forgetful?

This seems like a weekly thing. It makes you question the legitimacy of these stories.

 

people are careless and forgetful, especially outside their normal environment. what's different here is the apparent need to publicise the return of missing items/money, would such events warrant news coverage in your home country? they wouldn't in mine.

 

honesty in any population as a whole comes as no surprise, i'm a pretty careful person but once lost my wallet in london containing money, bank cards and an annual travel card worth over a 1000 GBP, which could have easily been used by someone else, i got everything back. i also once misplaced my money belt, containing cash and passport, in an airport, before the age of CCTV, it was all returned to me.

[StayinThailand2much]

And the point being? If he had (done the wrong thing and) kept it, he'd be rich now... ??

[StayinThailand2much]

23 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Funny how when one Thai does something dreadful, shortly after a Cabby/waiter/et al is 'perfectly honest' with a large amount of money someone forgot.

 

It's almost as if the police/government are handing bags of money to 'low-level' Thais for them to hand back with lots of publicity.

"Look how nice we really are"

True! I've followed this strange order of events over the past few years:

 

1.) Day 1 - someone gets robbed or taken advantage of; this making headlines... 

 

2.) Usually 2 (max. 3 days) later, an honest person, usually a taxi driver, finds and returns a very large amount of cash and/or valuables to the happy owner. That amount is usually in the hundred thousands or millions, so way more than the average Thai could ever hope to call his own.

 

The pattern is, that hardly any bad news as in 1.) are not followed by 2.) only a very short time after, and usually the news item is way bigger and better publicised than the negative story.

 

Strange coincidences...