JOHOR BARU: When Singaporean interior designer Tan Zheng Guang lost his bag containing foreign currencies worth RM15,000, he had a funny feeling that it was not gone for good.
Tan and his wife arrived here on Nov 3 to attend a friend’s wedding. On his way back, the 36-year-old lost his bag.
Little did he realise that two Malaysian Immigration officers at the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex (BSI) picked up the bag and went out of their way to contact him via the consulate in Johor Baru.
Tan and his wife had come to Johor Baru for a three-day stay and were returning to Singapore around midnight.
“I did not realise that the bag had dropped when the car door was opened during inspection at the checkpoint.
“We were tired and only realised the bag was missing with all my documents, bank cards and cash when we arrived home,” he said, adding that they even called the hotel to check if he had left the bag behind.
“It was a pleasant surprise when I got a call from our consulate general’s office that the Malaysian Immigration found my bag.
“Initially, I thought it was a scam call until the person sent me a picture of my identity card,” he said, adding that he returned to Malaysia to collect his bag on Nov 21.
Tan said he personally thanked the two Immigration officers who found his bag.
“Everything was accounted for and I am grateful to them for their honesty and professionalism in trying to locate me through our consulate.
“The first thing I did after realising the bag was missing was to cancel all my bank cards. I had not lodged a report yet as I had a feeling that someone would find my bag,” he added.
A Home Ministry official, who commended the two Immigration officers, said they found the bag on the car lane and immediately checked CCTV footage to identify the owner.
The official said they alerted their superiors who then informed the consulate general’s office to help track down the Singaporean.
The official added that this is the second case where Immigration officers found cash at the checkpoint and returned it to the owner.
In October last year, an Immigration officer received public praise for his honesty in returning about RM1,500 to a local woman who had left it at the checkpoint.
