An honest tricycle driver here returned a pouch bag containing PHP170,000 to its owner who lost it along the major thoroughfare of downtown Laoag.

Willie Pascual, 49, a resident of Barangay 59-A Dibua South, in this city, said in a media interview on Thursday that it never crossed his mind to take the money for himself.

Pascual said he was making rounds looking for passengers when he noticed a wallet on the street, prompting him to pick it and put the same into the money box of his sidecar.

But when he saw what was inside the pouch bag containing two bundles of 1,000-peso bills with no identification marks, he got nervous and decided to inform the president of his tricycle driver association at the passenger terminal.

“Imbagak, cousin, adda problemak. Adda napidotko a kuarta ket adu (I told him, cousin, I have a problem. I found a lot of money,” Pascual narrated, citing his fellow drivers hardly believe him at first until he showed them what he found.

Since there was no identification inside the pouch bag, Pascual said he reported the incident to a radio station personnel Nora Root Tomas, who happens to be his neighbor and announced it over DZJC Aksyon Radyo.

His instincts, Pascual said, told him that the owner needed the money and that returning it was the right thing to do.

It was learned that the money has been claimed by the owner after the latter aptly described the contents of the pouch bag.

As this happened, many residents here lauded Pascual for his honesty amidst the difficult situation nowadays and did the right thing to return the bag to its owner.

“I am proud of my neighbor for doing the right thing. May he inspires more others to do good things for others,” said Dennis Alipio, also a Laoag resident. (PNA)