Indian woman accidentally dumps gold worth Rs 12 lakh in trash, Dubai police recover it in 3 days

Dubai police recover Rs 12 lakh gold in 3 days. (AI-generated image)

A small mistake can sometimes turn into a big surprise. An Indian woman visiting Dubai was left shocked after she accidentally threw away a pouch containing gold worth nearly AED 50,000 (around Rs 12.32 lakh). The valuables were returned a few days later thanks to the efforts of a garbage collector and the Dubai police.

As reported by Khaleej Times, Kamini Kannan, who lived in the UAE for 23 years before moving to India in 2021, had returned to Dubai to attend a family wedding. During her visit, she decided to review her long-term gold investments amid fluctuating prices in late January.

Kamini noticed that the small pouch she usually used to store her valuables was worn. She temporarily moved the items into another pouch and left it on the dining table. The pouch contained four 22K gold coins, each weighing 8 grams, and a 50-gram 24K gold bar. Later that day, while cleaning up, the pouch was accidentally thrown away.

The family discovered the mistake the next morning, on 1 February, just a day before Kamini was due to fly back to India. A frantic search followed, but the pouch could not be found. It was then that her son realised he had accidentally discarded it.

“Those items are worth about Dh50,000 today,” Kamini explained. Believing the gold was lost for good, the family did not file a police report. “If it’s in the trash, that means it’s gone,” she said.

Three days later, on 4 February, Kamini’s son, Abhimanyu, received a call from the building guard. Someone was asking about the missing items. “It turns out, it was the police,” Abhimanyu said.

He learned that a garbage collector had found the gold while sorting rubbish and had taken it to the Gold Souk. Authorities intervened and questioned him about the origin of the items. Abhimanyu revealed, “He told them that he found it in the garbage. It seems they have a whole system to track the garbage. They know what bag comes from where.”

Abhimanyu was asked to visit Naif Police Station later that day with photographs, purchase bills, and proof of ownership. Though the process took a few hours, he described it as smooth and said the officers were “incredibly kind.”

Kamini expressed her relief and appreciation for the authorities. “I truly love how wonderful Dubai is. There’s no other city like it,” she said.