Man’s shock at finding lost bag at the coffeeshop where he left it sparks similar stories of how safe Singapore is

SINGAPORE: A Singaporean man who accidentally left his bag behind at a coffee shop found it three hours later, untouched and exactly where he’d left it. His relieved account has since gone viral, prompting others to share their own tales of how safe Singapore is.

Jeremy See recounted in a Facebook post on Tuesday (July 8) that he had been having breakfast that morning when he forgot to take his grey bag with him as he left. It wasn’t until he returned home, three hours later, that he realised the bag was missing.

“I tried to search for a phone number of the coffeeshop to call, but couldn’t find any,” he wrote, “With just less than 72 hours before I embark on my Singapore to Japan road trip, I dreaded the thought of having to replace my cards, IDs and documents at such short notice.”

A photo he shared showed the bag, grey and unassuming, resting on a four-seater table.

Mr See rushed back to the coffee shop, bracing himself for the bag to be gone. Instead, he was astonished to find the bag exactly where he’d left it, completely untouched.

He wrote, “My faith in Singaporeans was reinforced. No one touched my bag. They must have thought someone ‘chope’d’ the table.”

The story quickly resonated with thousands online. Comments poured in, with many netizens recounting similar brushes with absent-mindedness and relief.

One commenter recalled leaving an expensive camera bag at a hawker centre in Chong Pang. Facebook user David Lai shared, “I once left my camera backpack with over $10k worth of camera gear under a table in a hawker centre in Chong Pang. I left and went shopping, and only after 30 minutes [did I] realise I didn’t have my camera backpack.

“I panicked and ran back to the Hawker centre expecting the worst, and lo and behold, the bag was still exactly where I left it! There are very few places in the world that are that safe.

Another commenter, Jay Nesh Isuran, shared, “I left my wallet on Bus 157. I alighted and didn’t even realise I had forgotten it! The best part? I didn’t even realise my wallet was missing!

“The next day, when I boarded the same bus — to my surprise — my wallet was still on the exact same seat… with $300 cash inside, untouched. Now that’s why Singapore is one of the safest countries in the world!”

Not everyone was so fortunate, but even those who lost their belongings were often touched by strangers’ kindness. Several commenters described how good Samaritans had retrieved their lost wallets and delivered them personally to their homes.

Some, however, couldn’t resist teasing Mr See. One comment, which saw over a hundred reactions, said, “You chopped the table for 1/2 a day liao…”