Honest Bedok coffee shop server returns $20,000 cash

Tan says they had been distracted because they were rushing to a friend’s wake in Hougang. It was not until 10.30pm that they discovered the money was missing.

After the wake, they had gone home for a short rest and were preparing to head to their factory in Jalan Senang in Chai Chee, where work begins at night.

They searched their car before concluding that the bag was probably still at the coffee shop.

Tan says neither he nor his wife panicked.

“If someone took it, it cannot be helped,” he says calmly in Mandarin. “If something is meant to come, it will come. If it is meant to go, it will go.”

Not the first time

His wife had misplaced a bag at Changi Airport about two years ago, only for a taxi driver to return it.

Tan was not angry with her either. He says he could not bear to get upset over the matter as she has an inflamed colon and was due to undergo surgery on Nov 11.

On Saturday night, while she went to the factory to supervise the workers, Tan drove back to Lau Ka Kopitiam at about 11pm.

“I was just trying my luck to see if my bag was still there,” he says.

The couple are regulars and Tan says the servers recognise not only them, but also their grandson.

When Tan asked at the drinks counter if anyone had found a bag, the coffee brewer immediately called the coffee-shop operator over.

Impressed with honesty

Tan told him that his wife’s identity card and name cards were inside, along with the cash. After the contents were verified, Low Boon Chuan handed the bag back.

“I was very happy. They are so honest,” Tan says.

By then, Lau had already finished her shift at 10.30pm and gone home. She says she was relieved when she learnt the next day that the bag had been claimed.

“I am happy they managed to retrieve their bag. I was so worried for them.”

Lau, who has worked at the coffee shop for about a year, says she has found numerous mobile phones, wallets and even a Malaysian passport left behind by customers, but this was the first time she had picked up so much cash.

Low says he is proud of her and his other staff members for their honesty.

Since he took over Lau Ka Kopitiam in October 2025, forgotten water bottles and shopping bags have been common, with water bottles left behind at least once a week. But he had never encountered a bag containing so much money.

Had Tan not returned, Low says he intended to use the identification in the bag to track down its owner himself.

Coincidentally, the very next day, another customer left behind a Louis Vuitton wallet. She returned to claim it two hours later.

On Nov 10, Tan returned to Lau Ka Kopitiam with a $200 hongbao and bags of kueh, sweets, fried snacks and a Labubu doll from his son’s collection.

Tan initially tried to give the hongbao to Low, but the coffee-shop operator told him it should go to the employee who had found the money. The food was shared among the other coffee-shop employees, while the Labubu doll went to Lau.

Tan thanked Lau personally and took a few photos with her. She plans to keep the hongbao as a souvenir instead of spending the $200.

Tan says he will remind his wife to be more careful and carry less cash next time. He also plans to keep returning to Lau Ka Kopitiam.

After learning about Low’s charity work, Tan says he hopes to contribute to his meal donations in future. “This boss is very kind,” he says.