Dubai police honours Pakistani cab driver for integrity

Omar returned a passenger’s bag full of cash, gold to the police.

A 26-year-old Pakistani-origin cab driver in Dubai was honoured by the emirate’s police for returning a passenger’s briefcase full of cash and jewellery, reported the UAE-based newspaper, The National.

The Dubai Police held a ceremony in honour of Omar Hayah Ajmal Khan, who returned a bag containing 123,700 Saudi riyals and gold jewellery to the police, and presented him with a certificate of appreciation for his honesty and integrity.

Khan found the briefcase in the backseat of his cab last Tuesday.

He had completed his last fare of the day when he decided to pick up a Saudi man from Al Rigga Street in Deira and dropped him off in the Rola district of Sharjah.

“I was just going to refuel my taxi and go home,” said Khan, who works for Dubai’s Metro Taxi.

At the petrol station, while cleaning his cab, he noticed a case tucked behind the driver’s seat. When he checked to see what was inside, he found 123,700 Saudi riyals and gold jewellery.

“I immediately called my company to say a customer had left his bag of valuables in my car and that I was going to the police station to drop it off.”

Khan took the bag and its contents to Qusais police station.

“The officers at the station told me that they would call me when they located the owner of the bag and I’d have to return to verify his identity.”

Less than an hour later, Khan received the call from the station. He returned to find a very relieved Hatem Awad al Anassi, a 30-year-old businessman from Saudi Arabia. “When I got to the station I saw the Saudi gentleman and he was overjoyed to have his valuables returned to him. He thanked me profusely and gave me Dh500 for my trouble.”

Al Anassi said he was blown away when he heard the taxi driver had handed it in.

“This guy is on a limited income, he must really have a clean soul to do such a deed,” al Anassi said.

Khan said the thought of keeping the valuables never crossed his mind.

“This is just the way I was brought up. I’m a much happier person with Dh500 that I earned than Dh120,000 that I didn’t,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 21^st, 2012.