Strangers Asking People to "Please Watch My Bag" Favor at the Airport

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I was just doing some random Instagram scrolling. However, I realized that after all those annoying AI doctors, I found a blind spot in myself. Up until now, I have usually traveled in groups, even if I book a Grab to go to the airport. However, we have this scam that I never heard of until now, called the "please watch my bag" scam.

How does it happen? I saw some videos on Instagram. One involved an old woman asking a couple ot watch her bag. The old woman said, "I am looking for my grandson. Can you please watch my bag for me?" The couple said, "Can you open your bag, please?" The old woman refused. The old woman tried to play the sympathy card, like, "You're gonna grow old one day, and when you need help—you won't get it! Karma will get you!" Sounds like a Dhar Mann skit, right? However, life isn't a Dhar Mann video—it's way more complicated than that! The couple had every right to refuse. 

It might seem heartless to avoid holding the old woman's bag. However, if the old woman was really looking for her grandson, there were many other ways. The old woman was looking for her grandson, she could've gone to airport security, asked for help at the proper counters, and she could use an airport trolley while the security help find her grandson. 

What I need to consider is that it's also impractical to hand anyone else, but a known associate, to watch my things for me. As far as traveling with relatives is concerned, we were told to never leave your bag with anyone but the group you travel with. Leaving my bag with someone other than the travel companion is high risk. If I shouldn't risk my bag being stolen by a stranger, then why should I risk holding a stranger's bag, especially with unverified content?

I haven't tried it yet, but I never considered fake police or corrupt airport police. These people can be in cahoots for a frame-up or extortion scam. Sometimes, the person may be looking for someone to frame up as a smokescreen, or for someone to extort. Either way, these "hold my bag for me scam" can be dangerous. As the airport rule says, "Never leave your things unattended." That means handing one's own bag to someone is a violationof that rule. 

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