Beware of the con man

Have you received many email warnings about how people might try to steal things from you? Asks you to be careful not to be conned into something? Well, This is my version of a warning.

Today afternoon, as usual I was heading to California Fitness in Mid Valley for my exercise. Already heated up by the long wait for a car park space. I could have gotten into gym an hour earlier and avoided this incident. Anyway, when I was on my way upstairs, a guy came to approach me. Somehow I felt that its not because of my looks! ehem! hehe :P

The guy spoke in mandarin. And this is the translated version.

Guy: Excuse me. I'm new here and I'm from Taiwan. My handphone just ran out of battery and I hope that you could help me.

Me: Uh huh...

Guy: I need to call my girlfriend. I have no idea where she is. But my phone ran out of battery so I couldn't contact her. Can I borrow your phone so that I can call her?

Me: Okay...

Guy: Oh You are so kind, I'll make sure I buy you a treat later.

Well, I thought, no harm showing him some kindness of a Malaysian and lend him some help. I took out my phone, I keyed in the number he told me to and its an overseas number. Great, this time my credit going to habis liao. OK fine, I waited the other side to pick up. And let him talk to his girlfriend. I don't feel good about letting him have my phone. So I eyed him closely. I heard him say something like his girlfriend is on the 3rd floor and he promised to go and look for her. Then he handed my phone back to me, despite my worries of his sprinting off with my phone.

We went on upstairs... since gym is upstairs.... then suddenly he stopped and turn to me.

Guy: Can you borrow your phone to me again? Well, my girlfriend is from Hong Kong and she's the jealous type. She doesn't like to see me with another girl. So can I take your phone with me until I find her?

Me: HUH? I can go with you until you find her la.

Guy: No no... You can wait for me here and when I find her I will come back and look for you. Here, you can take my phone. I will surely come back for it.

He handed me his Nokia phone. And then I felt it. It was such a light phone! I think it could probably be an empty phone with nothing inside, like the model phone they have in phone shops. I pushed the phone back to him.

Me: No need la. You said your girlfriend is on the 3rd floor right. You can just look for her there.

Guy: No please trust me. I'm from Taiwan, I didn't bluff you one. (He took out his passport, air ticket and show me.) I need your phone to look for my girlfriend. My girlfriend is from Hong Kong and she gets jealous very easily. She don't like to see me with other girls. So I can't let her see you. I don't hope to have an argument and all later. You just wait for a while here... and I will be back with your phone.

Me: haha... sorry la. Can't help you. (And I walked off)

Waahhh... He sound so much like a salesperson. So convincing man! *thumbs up* Come on, if you're so afraid that your gf would be jealous, why approach me, a girl, at the 1st place? There's public phone on every floor in the shopping complex anyway. And do you think I will let you go away with my phone so easily and wait there like an idiot? Crazy.

So Boys and Girls out there, please beware of such con man out there! If you do meet one, make sure you bring him to a guard or police so that they can help him. I'm sure they can handle things better.