A security officer attached at Wilson Airport along Lang'ata Road in Nairobi warmed the hearts of many after returning a tourist's bag with over Ksh2 million inside.
According to a statement shared by Mohammed Hersi, a Governance and Tourism expert, on Thursday, November 3, a tourist who was on vacation in the country from the UK lost the bag after his trip to Maasai Mara.
The money in the bag was raised by a group of friends who had joined him for a vacation in the country.
However, after leaving Wilson Airport, he discovered that the bag which had the money was missing. The UK national returned to the airport, but CCTV cameras could not track the bag.
Resigned to fate, he left Wilson Airport lamenting and disappointed.
"We had many bags and luggage and as the central person, I was in charge of all the resources and finances, so I had a substantial amount of cash and plastic money in form of cards that facilitated our movements and comforts," the tourist wrote.
However, he received a call from a strange number while stuck in traffic around Kenyatta National Hospital. After probing him, the security guard informed the UK national that he had recovered his bag and all his money was intact.
"He called again and insisted to know my identity and this time he mentioned that he was calling from Wilson airport security office, I calmed down and told him that I am the one, he told me that a bag was recovered at the pickup point and was trying to trace the owner," the tourist stated.
"All the money totalling to around Ksh2 million (19,000 USD) and some thousands of Kenya shillings were all intact. All my cards were found intact. All other valuables, which included regalia given to me by my late grandmother, was also intact," he added.
Before the security guard recovered the money and called the UK national, the rest of the tourists who had toured the country had cancelled their trips and even submitted negative reviews.
Following Wilson Airport security guard's kind gesture, several Kenyans hailed him for his actions that saved the country's image.
"I want to thank Kenya Airports Authority and your staff at Wilson Airport and everyone who made this happen. My take home point Its not about how many CCTVs you got its about the people," Hersi wrote.
"This must be included as the tenth wonder of the world," Gathuki Ngahu wrote on social media.
Another tourist praised the security guard stating that he had a similar experience, but guards attached at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) helped him track his camera.
"I forgot a camera bag and tax free bag in the plane. I realised a couple of hours later. The cleaners of the plane found it and delivered it to the lost and found section where I recovered them," he wrote.
