NAIA janitor returns ¥3 M left by Japanese on plane

What would you do if you found a bag containing P1.5 million?

For Romeo Pelaez, 46, a janitor with the DIARS Co., the maintenance contractor of Japan Airlines (JAL) in Manila, the question had a simple, honest answer: try to return it to its rightful owner.

Pelaez returned a black clutch bag containing 3 million Japanese yen (about P1.5 million) left by a Japanese passenger of a JAL flight that arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Wednesday night.

Pelaez found the bag around 11 p.m. during his routine aircraft cleaning activities of a JAL 747 plane. The loot was left behind in a business class seat after Flight JL745 landed.

Pelaez immediately turned the bag over to the JAL Passenger Service Section unopened. Later inspection of the bag contents to identify the owner revealed it contained a wallet containing the cash, a cellular phone, several major credit cards and some important documents.

The bag was promptly returned to its owner, who is married to a Filipina, and who later expressed profuse thanks to Pelaez.

Pelaez — fondly called "Kuya Romy" by his colleagues — has been a janitor with DIARS Co. and JAL for 12 years.

The Japanese owner of the bag requested not to be identified for security reasons.

In an interview, Pelaez said that he did not think twice about turning over the bag unopened. "That’s our policy. Of course, we want to return any item left behind by any passenger," Pelaez told The STAR. "However big or small an item, it should be returned. It belongs to the passenger."

Crisologo Zenarosa, JAL deputy station manager, said that Pelaez will be given a formal commendation and also a cash reward of an unspecified amount.

Meanwhile, a janitress at the Manila Domestic Airport turned over to the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) a red jewelry box containing assorted gold and silver jewelry estimated to be worth between P150,000 and P200,000 she had found in the female comfort room.

The honest janitress was identified as Nita Ramos, 44, married, and resident of 129 Electrical Road, Pasay City, and employed with Manila Domestic Airport maintenance firm PRC Management Systems.

MIAA Investigation and Intelligence Division investigator Nemencio Bawalan said that Ramos found the jewelry box in a cubicle at the female comfort room at the pre-departure area of the domestic airport at around 12:30 p.m.

Apparently, the box was left behind by an unidentified passenger on one of yesterday’s flights.

Bawalan said they still had not determined the owner of the box, but they will return it to any person who can prove its ownership.

Ramos, too, will be given a commendation by MIAA and a possible cash reward for fulfilling her duty to provide good, honest service.