Some
days, it seems like there's no good people left in the world. However,
in reality, if you look hard enough, you'll always find something or
someone positive around you. One such example is the story of an elderly man who got his life savings returned to him, after a sharp and generous taxi driver caught on to the fact that he was being scammed.
Izy Rashid, the taxi driver, said that the taxi company had received a call "from somebody in London by the name of Gary to pick someone up in Marlow." However, when he arrived, he started to get a little bit suspicious, since when he got there, he found that there was no passenger to pick up - only a box. "My colleague brought it back to the office but then I took it back to the gentleman. At first he said, 'No, it's aftershave for my son,' because that's what the scammers had told him to say. We later realized they had rung him, claiming to be from the Met Police."
Barry Stone, a 78-year-old man
from Marlow, Buckinghamshire in the UK had been called by a group of
scammers who claimed to be from Scotland Yard, who are responsible for
policing the majority of London. They convinced him to withdraw his life
savings of around £12,000 ($15,677) from the bank, and send it via taxi
to their London address.
Izy Rashid, the taxi driver, said that the taxi company had received a call "from somebody in London by the name of Gary to pick someone up in Marlow." However, when he arrived, he started to get a little bit suspicious, since when he got there, he found that there was no passenger to pick up - only a box. "My colleague brought it back to the office but then I took it back to the gentleman. At first he said, 'No, it's aftershave for my son,' because that's what the scammers had told him to say. We later realized they had rung him, claiming to be from the Met Police."
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Needless
to say, despite complying with the alleged authorities, poor old Barry
was beyond worried. "I didn't sleep afterwards and I couldn't eat at
all, it was such a lot of money. I feel so relieved now - I can have
something to eat now, no problem," he told the Metro.
Apparently, Barry was told by the scammers that they were investigating
a high-profile fraud case, and that they needed all of his money to
search for fingerprints. They had also told him not to inform anyone of
the contents of the box, since it could have compromised the entire
investigation.
"It makes me look so foolish,"
he said. "I was rushing about, I went for my flu jab, came back at about
1.30pm. I hadn't had anything to eat and then you think the police are
phoning, you don't register."
Of course, Barry was beyond thankful for the work of his conscientious driver. "He's a wonderful man and friend now, a very, very good friend," he explained. "I'll start using his taxis now. I'm going away in a few weeks time and flying from Heathrow so I'll make sure I use him then. I'm really angry that people can do something like that though, rob you and take your money - targeting old people as well."
Of course, Barry was beyond thankful for the work of his conscientious driver. "He's a wonderful man and friend now, a very, very good friend," he explained. "I'll start using his taxis now. I'm going away in a few weeks time and flying from Heathrow so I'll make sure I use him then. I'm really angry that people can do something like that though, rob you and take your money - targeting old people as well."
Izy
was in full agreement. "How can they do that? I was brought up to
respect my elders so I'd never, ever dream of doing something like
that," he said. Despite Barry's incredible amount of gratitude, as well
as all of the positive media coverage that he's been getting, he doesn't
believe that he's a hero.
In fact, he believes that it's "just immoral to take somebody's money,
especially someone so old and fragile. I'm just happy I was able to stop
this man from losing his entire life savings, simple as that."
Source: ladbible
Images: INS
Images: INS
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