Woman asks strangers at St. Paul café to watch her stuff. She didn’t think they’d take the job so seriously: ‘You just saved me $2,000’
A semi-normal day at a café in St. Paul, Minnesota, or a high-speed chase in the new Bourne movie? A college student thought she was making a low-stakes request when she asked two people to keep an eye on her belongings while she ran to the restroom.
What she didn’t realize was that she had just recruited an impromptu security detail willing to sprint after a thief and shut down a brazen laptop grab in real time. Who knew people took those requests seriously? One TikTok later, the internet is still reeling over how a simple restroom break became a wild story about strangers and solidarity in troubling times.
‘My Heart is Still Racing’
In light of recent news, Minnesota has recently become a hotspot for political protests and general safety issues regarding immigration. TikTok user @possiblymagda makes note of this as she starts her five-minute re-telling of her story. The clip has 172,000 views, and the text overlay reads: “Stay safe out here guys be diligent and aware of your surroundings.”
The story is set in St. Paul, where the college student said she was already hesitant about being in. Nonetheless, she still ventured into a café. As she’s doing her homework on her laptop, she notes that the man sitting behind her keeps staring at her. She chalks this up to nothing, saying she doesn’t want to assume or judge for no reason.
“I think it’s rude to assume, but sometimes for your safety you must, at this point. That’s what this interaction has taught me,” she says.
However, at this point in the story, the student chooses to ignore the man. Maybe an hour in, she realizes she needs to use the restroom and asks the “sweet people” beside her if they can watch her stuff. They pleasantly agree. Upon returning, however, @possiblymagda notices that the two people are missing. And so is her laptop.
What Happened to Her Laptop?
Naturally, @possiblymagda is frightened. At first, she thinks the people simply had to leave, but she notices their belongings are still there.
She goes up to the cashier to ask if she may have had her laptop, but no luck. It’s then that another customer comes forward and tells her that she saw the man take her laptop and run with it. The plot twist? She says the two people ran after the man in pursuit of the laptop.
As the TikToker gets ready to follow after them, the people return, victorious. They told her that the man looked “sketchy” the entire time and that he had taken her laptop. As they recount the story, @possiblymagda effuses how much she appreciates these people.
She says, “They were like ‘I wasn’t gonna give up’ and chased until the guy got tired.”
@possiblymagda please don’t be like me guys and be aware of your surroundings!!! #minnesota #stpaul ♬ original sound – chicken
Possible Motive?
Once acquiring the stolen laptop, the TikToker says the people heard the man give his version of an excuse: “Well, she’s Somali.”
The college student balks at this and asks if people are just “profiling” now. She says it has happened before, but never in the sense that someone has stolen from her for simply being a certain ethnicity.
“I rather people cuss at me,” she says. She also pulls up her American passport and says, “This is the way we live. I got this on me at all times. This all feels dystopian.”
In slightly more uplifting news, @possiblymagda shares that the kind people offered to walk her to her car after the whole ordeal. The student says she was so grateful to them because they chose to run after the man even in freezing weather.
The student begs to repay them with meals, but the people kindly decline.
“You just saved me two thousand dollars,” she says, “Please, what do I owe you?” She ends the story by saying the people were very sweet and “May Allah grant them Jannah.”
People applaud the strangers
The most unifying response in the comments section seems to be the acknowledgement of community in times of crisis. One viewer says, “Out of all of this I’m realizing Minnesota has such great community and great neighbors. Glad your safe!”
Another shares, “The fact that they ran after him has me crying. they really watched after your stuff, omg I love that tho! They so real.”
“Awwww bye this restored my faith in humanity those two people are so kindd,” says a third.
Some are still simply baffled by the whole exchange and how far some people are willing to go for a stranger’s belongings. A comment with over 1,500 likes says, “This is genuinely what I need for people to do when I ask them to watch my stuff.”
One viewer says, “Damn sis atleast they ran after him. im shocked tho.” While another states, “Lolol they took their role seriously. they really were protecting that laptop with their LIFE.”
@possiblymagda shares one final thought about the whole situation: “As I reflect more on this unfortunate event, i think to myself had i left prior to this happening, would he have followed me or even worse, harmed me? im thankful that it was something as trivial as stealing my laptop rather than physical harm because only god knows what was going through his mind this whole time.”
The Mary Sue reached out to the creator via TikTok comment.
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