SINGAPORE: A Grab driver who held on to a phone left behind by a passenger was fined S$2,000 (US$1,500) by a court on Wednesday (Dec 20).
Kah Koong Chong, a 61-year-old man, pleaded guilty to one count of dishonest misappropriation.
The court heard that the victim, a 22-year-old business consultant, made a Grab booking at about 1am on Sep 1.
Kah took up the booking, picking up the woman from the Millenia Walk mall. He dropped her off at about 1.20am and then picked up another passenger at a shopping mall along Dunearn Road.
During the journey to Jurong West, this passenger found the victim’s phone in the back seat and handed it to Kah.
Kah then dishonestly kept the iPhone, which was valued at S$1,469.
The victim lodged an online police report two days later over her missing phone.
Investigations tracked down Kah as the culprit. While the phone was not recovered, Kah made full restitution to the victim.
According to Grab’s code of conduct, if a Grab user leaves their belongings behind, the driver is “required to inform Grab and make every effort to return the item to the user or Grab”.
For dishonest misappropriation, Kah could have been jailed for up to two years, fined, or both.