Bag containing B500k and iPad returned to Italian tourist: Phuket

[webfact]

Bag containing B500k and iPad returned to Phuket tourist
Eakkapop Thongtub


Alfredo De Santi is reunited with his lost bag.

PHUKET: -- Italian tourist Alfredo De Santi, 37, was fortunate to get his bag containing B500,000 cash, a mobile phone, passport and iPad back, after he left it in a taxi.

Mr De Santi arrived in Phuket yesterday morning (January 5) and took a taxi from Phuket International Airport to the Nanai Residence Hotel.

Once he realised he had left his bag behind, he filed a report to the airport at around 9.30am.

At 10am, police officers received a report that 51-year-old taxi driver Phanom Baanbai had found the bag and it was returned.

Mr De Santi was very thankful for its safe return and commented to police: “I love Thailand”.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/bag-containing-b500k-and-ipad-returned-to-phuket-tourist-43848.php


-- Phuket News 2014-01-06

[stevenl]

Good for him.

Sounds like he is not an ordinary tourist with 500k cash (unless of course he is a quality tourist we all like to see here )

[LivinginKata]

A very lucky man. But who carries 500k about with them. No mention if a reward given.

[IrishIvan]

And everyone is quick to give these taxi drivers a spray. What a nice story

[IrishIvan]

A very lucky man. But who carries 500k about with them. No mention if a reward given.

If he was Pakastani i could understand him carrying 500k. Perhaps it was his sin sot for his bride to be. He is after all staying on Nanai road and won't be single for long in that area

[Cricketnut]

Ahh Alfredo,

What are you doing walking around with 500,000 baht in Phuket? Unless your buying a condo, could you be up to something young chap???? No, of course not.... Seems rather strange to me people, but I think that needs some questioning by the Thai Police as to why he was carrying such a large some of cash i.e $15,000 AU/US approximately.

Good on the Taxi Driver, might have been in need of good Karma (and now he gave it back, said in jest ) good on him though!

[NamKangMan]

A very lucky man. But who carries 500k about with them. No mention if a reward given.

If he was Pakastani i could understand him carrying 500k. Perhaps it was his sin sot for his bride to be. He is after all staying on Nanai road and won't be single for long in that area

"He is after all staying on Nanai road and won't be single for long in that area" - and won't be needing to catch anymore taxis, either. :)

[Dararasmi]

The bag contained 1m when it went missing.

Nah, wonderful story. Hope to see more like this.

[ezzra]

So not every thing is lost in Phuket after all, this Italian guy and the aussie man who got

back his lost 40k will surly sing and praise Phuket virtues fro long time to come...

[abrahamzvi]

A very lucky man. But who carries 500k about with them. No mention if a reward given.

Indeed he is a lucky man., but also somewhat careless to carry BHT500k in cash. Has he declared it to customs on his entry to Thailand? By law one is required to declare to customs any amount exceeding $10k or equivalent.

[smileydude]

In this day and age of narcissism and materialism he's lucky to have his valuables returned to him in ANY country.

Makes you have a little more faith in humanity and that most people are still decent.

Taxi driver should be at least officially recognized for his good deeds by the mayor of Phuket or perhaps the Ministry of Tourism and a plaque plus reward given to him. I for one would sure like to know more about him and give him the recognition he deserves.

[Nemesis7]

Here is a similar story i read on newyork post ( PLEAE do not critisize any religion)

A Bangladeshi taxi driver in New York City has gone out of his way to track down the person who left thousands of dollars in cash in the back of his cab. Mukul Asadujjaman, a medical student, drove nearly 80km (50 miles) to an address he found with the money.

He left his phone number when he found no-one at home. The money belonged to an Italian grandmother visiting the US. Mr Asadujjaman was offered a reward, but he turned it down saying that as a devout Muslim he could not accept it.

Felicia Lettieri, of Pompeii, Italy, and six relatives had taken two cabs on Christmas Eve, Newsday newspaper reported. Mrs Lettieri, 72, left her handbag behind, with more than $21,000 of the group’s travelling money, jewellery worth thousands more, and some of their passports. Her sister, Francesca Lettieri, 79, of Long Island, said the honest driver had saved her family’s vacation.

"We really love what he did," she said.

‘Be honest’

A gracious Asadujjaman was quoted by the newspaper as saying that he may be broke, but he was also honest. "My mother is my inspiration. She always said to be honest and work hard."

Mr Asadujjaman called a friend with a car and drove to a Long Island address he found in the handbag.

No-one was at home, so he left his phone number and a note, the report said. His phone rang a short time later and he drove back to return the bag.

"They were so, so, so happy," Mr Asadujjaman told the paper.

Asked if he was tempted to keep the cash, Mr Asadujjaman said the money would have allowed him more time to study, "but my heart said this is not good".

He also turned down a reward, saying he could not accept it as a devout Muslim, Newsday reported.

"I’m needy, but I’m not greedy," he said. "It’s better to be honest."

Mr Asadujjaman is not the first honest American-Bangladeshi cabbie to hit the headlines for noble behaviour.

In 2007, driver Osman Chowdhury returned a lost bag containing diamond rings worth $500,000 to the rightful owner.

[HerbalEd]

Interesting how you don't see the Thai bashers posting on stories like this.

[chiang mai]

This is the third story about money being returned to tourists in as many days, does nobody else find that odd!

[Tycoon]

Here we go again, the TV FBI, 500 k is 15,000 USD. So he maybe staying a few months. Big deal why do people doubt

that he's a regular tourist?

Next month I'm bring in 1 million baht in cash, is that ok with the TV FBI???

[wade72]

A very lucky man. But who carries 500k about with them. No mention if a reward given.

Indeed he is a lucky man., but also somewhat careless to carry BHT500k in cash. Has he declared it to customs on his entry to Thailand? By law one is required to declare to customs any amount exceeding $10k or equivalent.

equivalent of 20k USD can be brought into Thailand without any reporting requirements.

He was well within the limit.

[Travel Dude]

I hope he rewarded the Taxi driver. A reward of 5000 thb would have been very nice. But even 1000 is a nice gesture.

[wade72]

Yesterday the wife lost her band new Samsung Galaxy Note.

Security guard at the gym she was at turned it into management.

Lady answered the phone when I called it and told us where to come to pick it up.

Security guard was a young kid and very happy with a 1,000 baht, however I had to stuff it in his pocket since he didn't want to accept it.

All is not lost.

[movsrus]

Here we go again, the TV FBI, 500 k is 15,000 USD. So he maybe staying a few months. Big deal why do people doubt

that he's a regular tourist?

Next month I'm bring in 1 million baht in cash, is that ok with the TV FBI???

Do what you want but be sure and declare it and be careful about losing it in a taxi otherwise we will read you crying the blues about losing $30K. Like I said a fool and his money are soon parted.

[PaulHamon]

I wonder if he declared the 500K when he cleared Immigration and Customs? Why would anyone be carrying that kind of cash? I don't have any sympathy for people who lose that kind of money. The old saying is true- a fool and his money are soon separated.

Could have be transfer from overseas via the bank.

[Suradit69]

A very lucky man. But who carries 500k about with them. No mention if a reward given.

It does always seem amazing all the valuables some people allegedly carry about with them ... or they report as being stolen anyway. Had it not been returned and he claimed he was carrying that amount, it would seem rather unbelievable.

If I were carrying that amount with me I would make sure I was hanging onto it at all times.

While honesty should be its own reward, I hope he gave the driver something more substantial than 'and commented to police: “I love Thailand”.'

[BonzaLad]

Italian tourists deplaning with large amounts of cash is neither unusual nor new, in this destination or any other for the last 50 + years in my experience.

Even without former official Italian restrictions on the money that could be spent on overseas holidays in the past (in the ‘70s no more than US$1K) , their economy (in which up to half is considered ‘black’ or ‘off the books’ by their own authorities) means that undeclared earnings are frequently taken in cash form when traveling, and in the past when restrictions on overseas spending were even more stringent, before the Euro’s introduction, watching them extract ‘the ready’ out of their socks or jocks on the tarmac in the old days as they deplaned was a frequent source of amusement to those of us in the inbound destination sector. Old habits die hard it seems!

[LivinginKata]

Weeding out all the inflammatory posts.

[stoli]

Why are so many people so skeptical? When I moved here I arrived with $15,000 in U.S. cash to open a savings account. Maybe he has moved here? It sounds like he just arrived. Makes sense to me, or do you all just hate Italians? Or Israeli's, or the French, or the Spanish. Maybe all Americans. Please keep this to yourself. You live in a land of many nationalities. Learn to live with it.

[ravip]

Interesting how you don't see the Thai bashers posting on stories like this.

Not to worry...

Some comments are almost that.

[wade72]

Why are so many people so skeptical? When I moved here I arrived with $15,000 in U.S. cash to open a savings account. Maybe he has moved here? It sounds like he just arrived. Makes sense to me, or do you all just hate Italians? Or Israeli's, or the French, or the Spanish. Maybe all Americans. Please keep this to yourself. You live in a land of many nationalities. Learn to live with it.

Not that, some people here hate anyone with a few bucks.... really 15k is not that much money and could easily be blown on a couple week holiday if one was so inclined.

I live here and regularly come back with that much cash on me, it's cheaper then paying $10 every time I take out 25k baht from the ATM.

Edited January 6, 2014 by wade72

[Tchooptip]

And everyone is quick to give these taxi drivers a spray. What a nice story

Even on TV certainly not everyones, but always the same...I have names Yes a nice story and a living proof there are good people everywhere

[ggt]

I love a story like this...it gives me hope for a culture that sure needs more of these folk to offset the propensity for corruption...

[Wombat6]

I wonder if he declared the 500K when he cleared Immigration and Customs? Why would anyone be carrying that kind of cash? I don't have any sympathy for people who lose that kind of money. The old saying is true- a fool and his money are soon separated.

Why do people jump to conclusions without knowing any facts. Would you make the same comment if the guy came into the country with travellers cheques and then cashed them.. Highly unlikely he would arrive in Thailand with 500k in Thai money

[culicine]

Yesterday the wife lost her band new Samsung Galaxy Note.

Security guard at the gym she was at turned it into management.

Lady answered the phone when I called it and told us where to come to pick it up.

Security guard was a young kid and very happy with a 1,000 baht, however I had to stuff it in his pocket since he didn't want to accept it.

All is not lost.

Less well off seem to be more honest. Phones are lost at my school everyday (including my son's), and none are ever returned, despite the fact that these kids are from well off families. Pity the parents don't teach them morals, like this taxi driver's parents. Good on him. Good karma coming:)