"Keep the Change"... A Kind Taxi Passenger Disappears After Leaving 300,000 Won Behind

Taking the front passenger seat and retrieving a wallet from the console box

A taxi passenger stole cash that the driver had secretly placed in the vehicle's console box, sparking public outrage.

Recently, a video titled "Wow... So slyly putting a hand into the console box and stealing... Taxi incident at Bucheon Station!" was uploaded on the YouTube channel 'Han Moon-cheol TV,' drawing attention. In the video, a man wearing an orange top and holding a black bag boarded the front passenger seat of a taxi in front of a subway station in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province.

The photo is unrelated to specific expressions in the article. [Image source=Pixabay]

The man explained his destination and, without fastening his seatbelt, placed his bag on the console box, the storage space between the driver’s and passenger’s seats. It is presumed that during this brief moment, he took the taxi driver’s wallet from the console box.

When the warning sound for not fastening the seatbelt went off, he fastened it, then placed his bag on his thigh, busily organizing his belongings before putting the bag back on the console box. He returned the taxi driver’s wallet to the console box. This entire process was completed within just two minutes after boarding the taxi.

Upon arriving at the destination, he took out his wallet from his pants pocket and paid the taxi fare in cash, saying, "Keep the change," while acting nonchalantly.

Even just before getting off, he distracted the taxi driver by saying things like, "Your eyes look bloodshot in the front," and "I work at an eye clinic, and both your eyes are bloodshot," seemingly to divert the driver’s attention.

The taxi driver discovered that 300,000 won in cash, which had been saved over a week, was missing from the wallet placed in the console box only after the passenger had left and some time had passed. The driver reviewed the black box footage multiple times and confirmed the suspicious behavior of the man.

During this process, the man’s ID card was also stolen. Lawyer Han Moon-cheol speculated that the man might have taken it thinking it was a card.

Lawyer Han commented, "This man is presumed to be a habitual thief targeting taxis," and added, "The passenger who claimed to work at an eye clinic took advantage of the driver like a flea sucking liver."

He also advised, "You might think that issuing a wanted notice would help find him, but there are defamation issues," and warned other drivers by posting the video, saying, "Be careful, everyone. It is dangerous to keep valuables in the console box."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.