Lindsay
A viral Twitter thread recently gave a heads up to travelers: If you encounter an overly friendly passenger, be on alert.
The warning comes from Unigwe Chidalu, a translator and journalist from Lagos, Nigeria.
Chidalu begins the thread with an image of an airplane’s overhead luggage compartment. An older lady asked Chidalu to help her fit her bag into the compartment, then noted another traveler interjected.
As soon as the two sit down, the woman starts talking and continues to talk the entire flight.
Then something peculiar happened as the plane began its descent. The passenger went from friendly traveler to Chidalu’s mother, referring to Chidalu as “my daughter” repeatedly.
The cabin crew only had painkillers to help the woman, who was holding onto Chiladlu’s hand the entire time.
When the plane landed, the same traveler from earlier in the story came back into the scene. The man recognized a hoax and advised Chidalu to stay away from the woman and make it clear to everyone that they were not traveling together.
The question did pop up, with the cabin crew asking if the two were related.
The woman wouldn’t stop, though. As the travelers are leaving the plane, the woman begged Chidalu — who was torn — to hold her handbag.
The gentleman who gave the advice caught Chidalu’s eye and shook his head, indicating “Do not take the handbag.”
When he had a moment, he passed Chidalu a note saying to let the cabin crew handle her. Taking his advice, Chidalu exits and heads toward baggage claim.
The woman — who was in a wheelchair when we last saw her — was now running through the airport, completely cured of her illness. In handcuffs, the woman spotted Chidalu and started yelling “My daughter! How could you do this to me?”
It clicked. She was carrying drugs. Chidalu realized she was trying to frame them by having their fingerprints on the bag.
The man who had witnessed everything and passed Chidalu the note came forward to confirm the two had met on the plane and were strangers.
By trying to get help with the overhead cabin and with her handbag, the woman was attempting to use Chidalu’s fingerprints against them.
Chidalu left that day with a new life policy: Your luggage, your problem.
