A London resident is searching for a young Chassidic man whose cigarettes he agreed to carry during a trip to Israel, after an unexpected mix-up at Ben Gurion Airport prevented the two from reconnecting and left him worried that the stranger believes he simply disappeared with the merchandise.

The unusual hashavas aveidah story was shared by Chazi Banish during Menachem Toker’s “Zman Avir” radio program. Banish said that while making a connecting flight on his way to Israel, he encountered a young Chassidic man who had purchased more cigarettes than he was permitted to carry.

The young man asked Banish whether he could take two cartons on his behalf, and Banish agreed. They arranged to meet after passing through customs at Ben Gurion Airport, where Banish would return the cigarettes to him.

But after the flight landed, their simple arrangement went awry.

Banish said the airport’s usual exit was closed because of construction, forcing him to find another way out of the terminal. He spent approximately an hour waiting and searching for the young man, but the two never managed to find one another.

Complicating matters further, neither had thought to exchange phone numbers. Banish therefore found himself holding two cartons of someone else’s cigarettes with no name, number or other way of contacting their owner.

Speaking with Toker, Banish said his biggest concern is that the young man probably believes he deliberately took the cigarettes and vanished. He stressed that he wants to return the cartons and is even prepared to reimburse their owner for their value if necessary.

“I’m sure he thinks I cheated him,” Banish said.

For the time being, Banish said, he has given the cigarettes to his nephew in Israel for safekeeping in the hope that their owner can be located.

Toker, intrigued by the unusual predicament, enlisted listeners of “Zman Avir” to help track down the mystery traveler. During the broadcast, he and Banish attempted to reconstruct as many details of their encounter as possible.

Banish described the owner as a young Chassidic bochur whom he met while traveling to Israel. He recalled that the young man apparently had more than 20 packs of cigarettes with him and said the two cartons entrusted to him were most likely Parliament Lights.

Coming just before Rosh Hashanah, Toker said Banish’s determination to find a complete stranger simply to return his property was a case of “classic hashavas aveidah.”

Toker urged listeners to circulate the story and its identifying details in the hope that someone would recognize the young man or know how to reach him.

Banish said he hopes the publicity generated by the broadcast will finally reunite him with the owner, allowing him to return the cigarettes and resolve the misunderstanding that began with a chance encounter between two strangers at an airport.

{Matzav.com}