Christmas comes early for Mr Dipoko at Phuket Airport
The Phuket News

PHUKET -- Concerned by a Cameroon man sleeping in the terminal at Phuket International Airport, officials stepped in to offer assistance this week, but only to be told that he was just waiting for his flight home.

The tourist, Dipoko Dipoko Eugene, 29, explained that he had arrived in Phuket on holiday on December 7, but had lost his wallet in Patong two days later. It was not revealed how his wallet became lost.

“He still had his return flight ticket with him, so the staff at the hotel where he was staying sent him here to the airport,” said Pattarawadee Phanbua of the Phuket Tourist Assistance Center.

“We found him on Saturday (Dec 12). He was sleeping on the floor and had not eaten,” Ms Pattarawadee told The Phuket News today (Dec 16).

Mr Dipoko’s flight home was booked for December 28, so he had to change to an earlier flight, but he was unable to contact his airline in his home country, she explained.

Full Story: http://www.thephuketnews.com/christmas-comes-early-for-mr-dipoko-at-phuket-airport-55428.php

-- Phuket News 2015-12-16

The story would make a little more sense if the quote had included some hint as to the happy outcome ...

“We brought him some food while we tried to contact his airline and his family, but it was not easy to make contact on the weekend,” she said. “So we let him stay with us while we tried to sort out his problem.”

But now with support from officials at the airport, Mr Dipoko explained that he did not want to go home. It was his first time in Thailand and he had spent only a few days in the Kingdom.

“We managed to contact a friend of his on Facebook who transferred some money to his account on Monday (Dec14). He was very happy and he thanked us a lot,” Ms Patarawadee said.

Mr Dipoko went back to his hotel in Patong that same day, apparently very happy to be able to continue his holiday as planned.

A very touching story. Thank you for reporting this. Not all Thais are corrupt, etc. It is great to hear about Thais who are kind and helpful. Happy holidays to all.