Erbil taxi driver returns over $13,000 left in cab

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Police in the Kurdistan Region's capital of Erbil publicly thanked a local taxi driver who handed over a large amount of money that had been left in his cab.

"Two civilians left a bag in a taxi containing $13,200 American dollars and 500,000 Iraqi dinars," read a statement released on Thursday.

After discovering the bag and its surprising contents, the driver, named as Fryad Shita Habeeb, apparently searched for those who had left it behind but was unable to locate them. He then contacted the police and asked for their help.

Commending the driver for his honest deed, the police statement read that Habeeb "was able to return the money to the hands of its owners at Erbil Police Directorate."

The two men who lost the money were not identified, other than being described as Iraqi males of Arabic ethnicity.  

Such positive media attention was likely welcomed by Erbil taxi drivers, who have recently been in the news mostly as a result of multiple accusations of sexual harassment or assault against female passengers or pedestrians. In late January, the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) Interior Ministry issued a series of new regulations aimed at addressing and curtailing such incidents.