Anthony Irungu, a Senior Broadcast Journalist at the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), is counting himself lucky after a cab driver, Benard Kamau, returned Ksh104,000 ($920) and an iPhone estimated to be worth Ksh150,000 that he had left in a cab after a ride from the airport.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, Irungu revealed that he had taken the cab at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) on Saturday, February 5, after he arrived back in the country from international duty.
Upon reaching his home along Thika Road, he alighted from the cab with a suitcase and a backpack. However, he left behind a waist bag that had the money, a passport and the iPhone.
"I took the cab at the airport (JKIA) at about 11.30p.m on Saturday and headed home. I had a number of bags with me, and I must have forgotten it because of fatigue. It is a really small bag, a waist bag, which I thought I had kept in one of the other bags," Irungu revealed.
His recount was corroborated by Kamau, who told Kenyans.co.ke that he noticed the bag on the floor of the front passenger seat when he was fueling his car. He called his last three passengers, who all denied ownership of the waist bag.
Kamau opened the bag, in search of a way he could contact the owner. It was then that he saw the money, and the top-dollar phone, but even better, a passport and a job identification card.
"I saw the money, it was about 1,000 dollars; nine 100-dollar bills and one 20-dollar bill. Also in the bag was an iPhone one of the latest models. When I saw his job ID, I went through my phone because he had paid me using mobile money. I got his number and called him," he stated.
The driver recounted that at first, Irungu distanced himself from the bag, until he (Kamau) revealed the contents of the bag. The two began making arrangements on how the bag could be returned.
"I was actually asleep when Kamau called me. I asked him if he was in a position to bring the bag to me because it was late, but he told me he could not because he was in Ngong," stated Irungu.
The two agreed to meet the following day, but Kamau had other plans. A Christian by faith, he would be attending a church service and a meeting after the service, information he shared with the BBC journalist.
"At one point, I switched off my phone because I was attending a service. But before I did, I alerted him so that he does not assume that I was trying anything sinister. We agreed to meet after church. He was very calm, I'm not sure I would be if I had left even Ksh5,000, " the cab driver pointed out.
He switched his phone back on at around 4p.m and called Irungu who asked to meet him in town. Upon arrival, he handed over the bag to the journalist with the money, phone and travel documents intact.
Irungu confirmed that all the Ksh104,000 was there. He was grateful to Kamau, and duly rewarded him with a token of appreciation, which both parties chose to keep private.
