See pictures of honest cabbies in UAE who returned cash, gold, diamonds and more

An Egyptian businessman who left Dh200,000 in cash and Dh1 million worth of diamonds in the trunk of a taxi had nearly given up hope of ever finding it. But thanks to the honesty of the driver, he has been reunited with his treasure. Bangladeshi cabbie Abdul Halim, who earns around Dh3,500 a month, said he discovered the hoard after duty hours. “My shift ended at 4.30pm and as usual I checked the boot. Inside lay a big brown leather bag. I opened it and I froze. There were several wads of currency, a chequebook and a boxful of diamonds. I hadn’t seen anything like this before,” said the 31-year-old, recalling the May 25, June 2013, incident.

This Asian taxi driver, Mohammad Nazem, was honoured in September 2019 for his honesty after he returned a bag of money forgotten by a footballer. A team of officers visited Mohammad Nazem at his taxi company and honoured him in front of his workmates. The driver was on duty when a passenger, Bismark Ferreria, a Brazilian football striker at Khor Fakan Football Club, left a bag full of money behind.

In October 2016, a humble taxi driver showed how great it is to be in Dubai by returning 25 kilos of gold, which was worth millions, to a passenger who left it behind in the red-topped airport taxi. The driver's name is Liton Chandra Nath Pal Nepal. The incident occurred after a post-midnight run when he ferried four passengers from Terminal 1 of Dubai Airport to Muraqqabat in Deira. The passengers had four pieces of luggage which they had put inside the boot of the car. When they got off at their destination at around 2.45am, the cabbie offered to help them unload the bags as is customary. But they refused his help. So the driver went back to the driver’s seat and left after they paid him the fare. Later, he found the valuable metal in his car.

On December 26, 2019, an honest taxi driver was recognised in Sharjah for leading the life of a true role model. Abdul Aziz Al Jarwan, Director of Sharjah Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), honoured Shamshad Malang for returning Dh15,000 that was left behind in his cab. Upon discovering the cash, Malang, who works at Kalba city in the emirate of Sharjah, immediately returned the money to the main office. The transport authority was able to locate the owner of the money by tracking down the report issued by the Lost and Found Department.

Dr Nishith H Ambalia pictured here with Dubai taxi driver Nawaz, who returned his phone after it was left behind in his taxi.

On June 11 2019, the Ras Al Khaimah Police honoured an Asian taxi driver who returned Dh100,000 that a passenger had left behind. Brigadier Abdullah Ali Menakhas, Acting Director General of Police Operations, RAK Police, said that Kushu Ibrahim was an honest driver. He did not think twice and directly reported and handed over the money that the passenger had left behind in his taxi to the RAK Police. He added that the RAK Police have honoured several cabbies for returning valuable items passengers left behind. The happy passenger thanked the honest driver and RAK police.

On January 13, 2020, a Pakistani taxi driver in Dubai turned a saviour for an Indian girl by returning her lost wallet that had her UK student visa just three days before she was to return after a winter break with her parents. What makes the story of Raechel Rose and Modassar Khadim even more heartwarming is the way the Pakistani youth went out of his way to return the wallet even as the expat Indian family was searching for it in panic. Rose, who flew to Manchester on January 8, had lost the wallet in Khadim’s cab late evening on January 4. The corporate law student at Lancaster University was on her way to attend a friend’s birthday party while on holiday in Dubai where she finished her graduation.