An employee of a convenience store at a petrol station in Samut Songkhram has been praised for returning 100,000 baht in cash to a Brazilian woman who left an envelope containing the money at the counter before travelling on a van to a tourist venue.
Pornpailin Seesod, 33, employee of PT petrol station’s convenience store on Rama II Road in tambon Bang Kaew of Samut Songkhram’s Muang district, on Thursday handed 100,000 baht, both in US and Thai currencies, to Ms Paula De Freitas Ballarin Spindler at the Immigration Bureau’s operations centre on the fourth floor of Suvarnabhumi airport’s passenger terminal.
The tourist was delighted to get the money. With tears of joy, she hugged Ms Pornpailin and thanked her for her honesty. The tourist gave some money to the woman.
Tourist police, immigration officers and members of the media who witnessed the return of the money applauded.
Ms Spindler said it was her seventh visit to Thailand. Before she lost the money, she left a hotel in Bangkok for the Amphawa floating market in Samut Songkhram province on Jan 5.
On the way, a van she and her friends were travelling in stopped at the petrol station. She went to the convenience store there to buy a raincoat. She paid money and left, unaware that she left an envelope containing the cash there.
She later found out she lost the envelope after returning to the hotel. She examined footage of closed-circuit television cameras at the hotel and found no clues.
On the same day, Ms Pornpailin filed a report with police at Muang police station in Samut Songkhram province, asking them to help find the owner of the lost envelope containing the cash. The officers then examined the footage of CCTVs at the petrol station that shed light on the owner of the money.
Ms Pornpailin said she was glad the money was returned to its owner. Since childhood, her parents had taught her not to take other people’s valuables.