Tatay Solomon thankful to owner of fake P1K bill for help he is now getting

Alfanta and his wife, Luceria. CDN Digital photo | Immae Lachica

CEBU CITY, Philippines—Instead of being angry, Solomon Alfanta said that he will be forever grateful to the man who duped him with a fake P1,000 bill.

Had it not been for the still unidentified man, Alfanta said that he would not get all he help that came his way.

“Sa 50 ka tuig nga naninda mi, pasalamatan nako tong namiktima nako kay akong kwarta nga dala niya, mas dako ang na baws sa akoa” he said.

(I’ve been a fruit vendor for 50 years and I would like to thank the person who duped me with a fake bill because whatever money he took from me, I received so much more in return.)

Alfanta, 76, told CDN Digital that he managed to save money from cash donations that he received from strangers and loyal customers for his medical checkup.

Since he was hospitalized and diagnosed with a heart ailment last year, he no longer had the opportunity to see a cardiologists for his checkups.  He intends to already schedule a visit to a cardiologist now that he already has money to spend on his medical needs.

Alfanta said that he intends to save for his family’s needs whatever amount of money that he will have left.

His wife, Luceria, is as happy and grateful as Alfanta.

Strangers visited Solomon Alfanta at the new Minglanilla public market to hand their donations to the old man. | Contributed photo

Luceria said that she even once joked that they should celebrate for all the help that came their way and organize a beach outing with their seven children.

But they never pursued the plan because she knew that Alfanta’s money would be put to better use if spent on his medical check up.

Read More: Netizens disgusted over man who duped 76-year-old fruit vendor

Alfanta recalled that he was selling fruits outside of the new Minglanilla public market at around 5 a.m. on Easter Sunday, April 21, when a man approached him to buy P100 worth of bananas, paying him a P1,000 bill.  Alfanta gave a P900 change.

“It was still very dark then so I did not notice that the money was fake. I only knew that it was fake when I used the money to buy pork. It was the meat vendor who pointed it to me,” he said in Cebuano.

“Tay fake man ni,” the meat vendor told him then.

One of his loyal customers shared Alfanta’s experience on social media to also warn others to always be cautious when receiving paper bills especially from strangers.

Alfanta said that his customer was like an angel to him.

Help poured in after the social media post about his experience with the man who duped him with fake P1,000 bill went viral.

Read More: Fruit vendor gets help after FB post on money he lost to a man who duped him went viral

“I was very shocked when people started buying the fruits I was selling. Some would just buy P100 worth of bananas and then give me P500 and would not ask for change. Some would pay so much more than what they bought, and I was really clueless why they were doing this.  A friend from the market was the one who told me that my story was on social media. It later on dawned on me why those people are refusing to collect their change. It was their help for me and my wife” he said.

Strangers coming from Barangay Guadalupe in Cebu City, San Fernando town and Talisay City in south Cebu also visited him at the public market to hand whatever assistance they could give.  He said that there were even Filipinos working abroad who sent help through the customer who posted about his experience with a fake P1,000 bill on social media.

His most recent donor was a Manila-based celebrity who also sent help after he read about the old man’s story posted on Inquirer.Net.

CDN Digital visited Alfanta at his residence in a mountain Barangay in Naga City earlier today, April 30, to personally hand the cash donation.

A teary-eyed Alfanta said that he would forever be grateful to all the kind-hearted individuals who took notice of his plight. /dcb