Well-dressed individuals, often driving their own cars or strolling in shopping malls, are also joining the crowds of shoddily dressed beggars seeking cash, asking for an emergency loan that will be paid back.
“I was in my car waiting at a red light when a good-looking young man knocked on my window and asked me for some change. I was slightly surprised at first because the guy looked very well and was dressed in new and clean clothes,” said Ammar Abdulwasea, a 34-year-old dentist. “I lowered my window and was about to ask him a question when he snatched my phone and ran off,” he added.
Many of these people often say they are away from home, low on petrol and have no cash. “I see these people in many places — in front of mosques, and in hospitals and gas stations. I once bumped into a man who told me he had come from Madinah to visit his mother in Jeddah and that he had run out of cash. I bought him a full tank of petrol and wished him good luck,” said Mohammed Al-Jasser, a 48-year-old schoolteacher.
“Funnily enough, I was waiting soon after at another gas station and saw another guy claiming he had also run out of money and asked me to pay for a full tank. I then realized  I had been fooled by the first guy,” he added.
Helping the same woman twice is what made Lamia Al-Majed realize that she had been conned by a beggar. “I was waiting for an appointment at the hospital when a woman holding a baby started crying that she couldn’t afford her baby’s medicine. I naturally took my wallet out and gave her the amount of money she wanted,” she said. “Six months later, I went to the same hospital for another appointment and saw the same woman holding her child and telling me the same story ... I thought to myself maybe she is telling the truth and gave her some money,” she added.
A nurse later told Al-Majed that the woman often visits the hospital and asks other patients for money even though she does not treat her child there. “I felt bad for the money I gave her and wondered how one would know if the person was telling the truth,” said Al-Majed.
There have also been incidents in which women with their own drivers and maids have asked people to pay for their groceries. “I was sitting in a mall waiting for the shops to open after prayer where a young lady came to me holding a child. She also had an Asian maid with her and was followed by an Asian driver.
She started talking to me and telling me stories about her financial problems and how her husband is tight with money. She then asked me if she could borrow money to buy groceries,” said Sabah Bukhari, a 42-year-old housewife. “I didn’t reply to her and didn’t give her any money because I thought it weird that she could afford a driver and maid but couldn’t afford to feed her kid,” she added.
Shabeeb Al-Subaiey, spokesman for Jeddah’s Anti-Beggary Department, said the department often has problems with members of the public becoming emotional and trying to help beggars when officials arrest them. “These beggars are illegal residents and often change how they look to mislead police and avoid arrest,” he said.  “People should not give anyone money, food or clothes, and if anyone wants to donate then they should donate to charities which will then help those in need.”