Everyone has a past. It is difficult to judge what a person has been through or where they are coming from. A policeman compared to a person panhandling on the side of a street, both have faced a very different set of circumstances that led them to where they are in their lives. For a panhandler, usually, its a series of bad decision making and unfortunate events that push a person to the point of standing in front of strangers with an empty hand. But is that always the case?
Two men were on their way to work in Richmond, Virginia. They go from the same route every day, see the same streets, the same people. One day, however, something changed. The men notice a panhandler behaving strangely. The woman, who was unaware that she is being watched, does something in the next instance which took the men by surprise.
It was a cloudy morning in Richmond, Virginia. Jake was waiting outside Paul's house, expecting him to come out of the door any minute now. On days like these, when Paul is slightly late for work, Jake overthinks if carpooling is the best decision after all. He is tired of getting late and then being stuck in traffic at the signal every day.
Due to heavy traffic, Jake and Paul have to wait at the traffic signal for at least 30 minutes as the cars slowly move forward. Traffic during the rush hour was a nightmare. But by this point, they were almost immune to the waiting. As a result, Jake was almost immune to waiting anywhere, even outside Paul's house as he honks the horn repeatedly urging him to hurry up!
Paul headed out of his kitchen grabbing one piece of toast in one hand, his bag in the other. He headed out of the main door and is greeted by Jake's glare. He couldn't help but chuckle to himself. He has known Jake for quite a few years now, starting from being roommates in the first year of college and now working in the same company. He loved to complain about getting late for work, yet showed up the next day anyway.
Paul got in the front seat and looked at Jake, who was still glaring. "Sorry, my alarm...", he mumbled. Jake just rolled his eyes and started driving. After all, they both knew this isn't the last time. Plus they can't stay mad at each other anyway. And soon enough they were back to their banters.
Traffic was a nightmare as expected. The cars were barely moving by inches as they arrived on the traffic signal. Knowing that they will be here for a while, Jake put on some tunes to help them pass the time. Paul was busy with his thoughts staring blankly out the window, his head mindlessly bobbing to the music.
Paul has been pondering on his startup idea for quite some time now. But he lacks the courage needed to quit his current job and start his own thing. He can't ask Jake to come along and leave his stable corporate job for something as uncertain as to his ideas.
Paul's attention was caught by a woman standing at the end of the line they were waiting in. Paul had noticed her before too, many times. As soon as the cars would stop at the signal, she would come knocking at their windows to get some cash from people. Paul couldn't help but feel sad for the woman. He couldn't imagine living his life on the road, asking strangers for money.
He wondered if this is a sign that he should stop chasing his idea of a startup and stick to the stable paycheck he receives at the end of every month. Decision making has always been a complex concept to him. He is the most indecisive person he has ever known. Jake was much better in this regard, he always knew what he wanted in his life.
Paul's track of thought came to an abrupt halt as he heard some commotion coming from the front of the line. His eyes caught the panhandler shoving her envelope to somebody's car window, asking for pennies. Paul noticed that the man inside the car did not open the window, probably refusing to help the woman. But what happened next was something he did not see coming.
When she realized that the guy is not going to help her, the woman completely lost her cool. She began to verbally abuse the man inside the car. She took the envelope and shoved it to his window, rather aggressively. The woman was making a scene in the middle of the road. Jake and Paul exchanged uncomfortable glances.
They both have been seeing this woman quite frequently on their way to work almost every single day. But this is something odd. Why is she abusing a man for not helping her? The men saw as the woman continued to make a scene and yell at the man inside the car, without any care about people watching her.
The scene was cut short by the signal turning green. The cars slowly moved on, and so did the driver she was yelling at. The men watched as the woman went back to the side of the road, waiting for the next set of cars. Something about her behavior was striking to them as certainly unusual.
Jake and Paul noticed how the woman went back to being normal as soon as a new set of cars stopped in front of her. She took her envelope and began to shake it in front of the cars again like nothing ever happened. This behavior on the panhandler's part was raising some red flags for the men.
Jake put the car into drive mode and jumped on the accelerator as soon as it was their turn to cross. They had been waiting for so long in the traffic he was almost hungry again. Paul, on the other hand, was still caught up with whatever happened on the signal. He didn't think the woman's behavior was normal at all.
He knew she is struggling to live her life without money and a home. But being aggressive to random people who refuse to help her was just not acceptable. Tragically, she is homeless but nobody is obligated to help her if they don't want to and she should understand that.
The next day, the men were back at the signal on their way to work. Paul spotted the woman waiting at her usual spot again. As soon as the signal turned red, she came to the cars and began to shake her envelope. Many people dropped some bills into the envelope but again, there were a few who didn't help her.
The woman, just like yesterday, began to yell at those people. She pushed the envelope to their windows throwing abusive words at them. The men were stunned. Yesterday, they could have assumed she is having a bad day. Yet here she is again, yelling at people who don't help her.
As usual, when the signal turned green, the woman went back to the side of the road and began to wait for the next set of cars to arrive. The moment new cars pulled up in front of her, Paul's suspicion was confirmed as the woman began to ask for money like nothing ever happened.
Jake and Paul decided to check out what is wrong with this woman. So instead of driving off this time, they pulled up their car at the intersection and parked in the nearest alley to where she stood to ask for money from people.
The men noticed how when she was done asking for money, she took her envelope filled with bills and coins and went inside the parking lot of a fast-food chain. Jake and Paul stepped outside of their cars and began to follow her.
They saw as the woman reached an area of the parking lot where there was nothing but a single car parked in the far corner. The woman rested her envelope on the bonnet of the car and took out all the cash from the envelope. She smirked as she counted the money she had collected.
The men were confused by what is happening. They witnessed the woman put the cash inside another purse and threw some coins in the envelope. They assumed it is her way of encouraging people to give her money. The woman reached the door of the car, and then looked around to ensure nobody is watching her.
The men watched as the woman tried to reach for the handle on the car's door. She was trying to steal a car! The duo rushed out from their hiding spot and called her out for trying to steal a car. The woman was bewildered to see the young men come out of the blue and corner her.
The woman looked at them with utmost horror as the men began to interrogate her. They asked her why she yells at people on the road and now she is trying to steal a car. Before the woman could say anything in her defense, Jake noticed something in her hand. It was a set of car keys. The car belonged to her!
Jake and Paul realized that the woman is nothing but a fraud. The car belonged to her which means she is not even homeless, to begin with. She is just harassing people on the streets and forcing them to give her money! This is not okay in any way.
The woman watched as the guys sent a dozen of questions her way. She didn't plan on answering anything. Instead, she started brisk walking outside the parking lot. The men followed her out. She went to the drive-through window and began to complain about the two men, claiming they are bothering her.
Before the lady in the drive-through could say anything, the boys told her that the woman has been utilizing the parking space without eating anything from the restaurant. They told her how she has been harassing people on the streets to give her money. Ultimately, what the woman didn't realize could happen, happened.
The lady in the drive-through told the panhandler to remove her car from the parking and shut the window. The woman turned to the men and told them to leave her alone or she will call the police. The men were barely phased by her threat, they knew her actions have to be exposed or she will continue to harass people.
The woman took out her phone and called the police claiming that two men are harassing her in the drive-way. Soon enough, there were police cars lined up in the parking lot. The police officers stepped outside to interrogate the guys. The woman stepped away with a satisfied grin but little did she know, things are about to backfire.
The police got the statement from the boys and went to interrogate the woman as well. Turns out, they agreed with the men that what she was doing was unethical. They began to interrogate her on her actions. The officers informed her that it is illegal whatever she is doing. They were mid-sentence when the woman ran back towards her car in an attempt to flee the scene.
The woman ran back to her car and locked herself inside. To top that, she opened her window and started throwing bottles of Gatorade towards the police car and the officers! She assumed it will buy her time to start her car and run, but she couldn't have been more wrong.
At last, the police offers arrested the woman on multiple accounts; she pretended to be a panhandler, she stole money from people when she didn't need it, and not only did she ask for money, she fought with people when they refused to help her. Plus, she threw Gatorade at the police officers after losing her cool.
The woman was identified as Micha Leigh Dominguez. She is a resident of Richmond and is 40 years old. She owns a house and obviously a car. She is neither homeless nor a real panhandler. She has been faking it and making a fool out of people for many years now.
The two men were satisfied with the success of their endeavor. They were glad a dishonest woman like her is being put behind bars. Now she can no longer steal or harass people on the streets. However, that was not the end of this event.
What even Paul didn't know was that Jake was recording a video this whole time and had captured everything that happened on camera! He decided to share this video on his facebook to alert people about these fake homeless people and to be careful the next time they decide to help one.
Before they knew it, the video went viral online! There were so many people from the local area who recognized the woman instantly. Apparently, she has been around for quite some time now. People remembered spotting her on traffic signals arguing with people for money.
People were surprised she has been doing this for so long without coming into the attention of the residents of Richmond. That is until the two men noticed her and decided to tackle the situation. The news of her arrest sent a wave of relief over everyone.
Somebody came forward to reveal that the woman does not work alone. In fact, she is part of a gypsy group who were in the 'business' of panhandling and were spread across Virginia! Despite this claim, not much proof was available for anyone to believe this entirely. There were no further reports from the police either.
Helping the needy and the homeless is necessary, no doubt about it. But because of such people, those who are actually in need and can use the help do not receive it. It becomes difficult to differentiate between those who are genuine and those who are just faking it.
The actions of this woman were in absolute disregard of those who actually live their lives on the streets. Taking advantage of a sensitive situation is nothing but disrespectful. After the arrest, the police officers have yet to make a statement about the gypsy gang, and whether or not she is a part of it. But as of now, she is behind the bars for good.