Thai road sweeper returns nearly 200,000 baht lost gold accessories to owner

Residents in the central province of Phetchabun hailed the honesty of a Thai road sweeper after she found lost gold accessories worth nearly 200,000 baht and returned them to their rightful owner.

The 55 year old road sweeper, Ratree Chumwong, successfully returned the gold accessories to the owner on Monday, August 14, with the help of a restaurant owner and police officers.

Ratree told Matichon that she was on morning cleaning duties on Tung Jai Pattana Road at 5am when she stumbled upon a round box from a gold shop in front of a house along the road.

Ratree said she recognised that it must be a valuable asset but did not dare check it. She believed the box belonged to the house owner and decided to hide the box in a plastic bin and wait for the house owner to wake up.

Hours passed but no one stepped out of the premises and the house was quiet. She decided to seek help from the owner of a restaurant nearby the house. The restaurant owner checked the box and discovered a gold necklace, a gold bracelet, and an amulet in a gold frame inside.

The restaurant owner and Ratree then rushed to Mueang Phetchabun Police Station to search for the owner of the gold accessories. An officer managed to contact the owner of the house, 31 year old Ittiphon, where Ratree found the gold, and Ittiphone confirmed that the gold belonged to him.

Ittiphon visited the police station to reclaim his treasures and expressed his gratitude to Ratree. Ittiphone explained that he was at a party the night before and took off the gold accessories in order to keep them safe while enjoying the party.

Ittiphon added that he put the gold box in his bag and he must have accidentally dropped it when opening the house door. Ittiphon said she was very happy to get the gold back because they were worth nearly 200,000 baht.

Ratree expressed her happiness from doing a good deed.

“I thought the owner must regret the loss because I feel that when I lose my belongings. I did not dare to touch the box and decided to ask for help from the restaurant owner. I am happy with my good act. I almost cried. I made a phone call to my son and told him that I did something good that morning. My son was also happy for me.”

A number of Thai people were also happy for Ratree. The Deputy Mayor of Meaung Phetchabun Municipality, Phattaradon Kositanon, even visited Ratree at her residence to express appreciation for her honesty. Phattaradon also invited her to the municipality office to receive the certification and reward for her action.