The Real Story: How My Bag (and Passport) Got Stolen in New York

Losing a passport is stressful.

Losing your entire bag with your passport, cards, cash, sunglasses, and everything else?

That’s a nightmare.

But what made my experience even worse was this one detail no one expects:

The people who stole my bag didn’t run away immediately.

They stayed.

The whole time.

Right there.

Watching us panic, call the police, and wait, and only left seconds before the detective arrived.

Here’s the real story, exactly as it happened.

It Started at Domino’s. I Left My Bag for Literally 5–6 Minutes.

We stopped at a Domino’s near Times Square.

When leaving, I accidentally left my bag inside.

The moment I realized, I ran back, not even 6 minutes later.

But the bag was gone.

I asked the Domino’s staff if they saw anything.

Nothing.

I asked about the CCTV.

They refused to let me see it.

My heart sank, but little did I know the real shock was coming.

We Went to the Nearest Police Station… and Got Told to Go Back

We rushed to the NYPD, thinking we could file a complaint.

But they said:

“You need to go back to the location and call from there. A detective will come to that spot.”

So back we went, the longest walk ever when you don’t know what’s going to happen next.

Calling the Police From Domino’s & The Long Wait

We didn’t have a working phone, so we had to ask strangers to let us make the call. Once the call was placed, we waited.

Not five minutes.

Not ten.

Two hours.

Two hours of standing there, feeling helpless.

And here’s the twist:

The thieves stayed inside Domino’s the entire time. For the whole two hours. They sat through our panic, through the entire chaos, and only walked out minutes before the detective finally arrived.

We didn’t know it yet, but CCTV would later show everything.

The Detective Arrived & Checked the Cameras

When the detective finally came, Domino’s allowed him to review the camera footage.

That’s when we saw it:

The people sitting right behind us, the ones we didn’t even notice, picked up my bag casually, placed it beside them, and went away, and some of them just… sat there.

Eating.

Relaxing.

Watching everything unfold.

And then, shortly before the detective walked in, they got up and left.

It still gives me chills thinking about it.

Filing the Report & Facing Reality

The detective wrote the full report:

✔️ Bag stolen

✔️ Passport stolen

✔️ Cash gone

✔️ Cards gone

✔️ Sunglasses gone

✔️ CCTV description

✔️ Exact time and location

Next Steps: Blocking Cards & Racing to the Indian Consulate

We blocked all cards immediately.

Then the next mission began, getting a new passport.

The Indian Consulate process was surprisingly smooth once we figured out where to go:

Important: You do NOT enter from the front. There is a staircase going down to a small door, which is where you actually go to file emergency passport forms.

We filled out everything, attached the police report, explained the incident, and waited.

By evening, I had a new passport in my hand.

The Passport Breakdown (Simplified):

✔️ If you live in India

You get a White Passport

• One-time use

• Only valid for travel back to India

• Not usable afterwards

• You need to apply for a passport once you go back to India

✔️ If you’re an NRI (like me)

You get a brand new passport

• Valid for 2–3 years

• Which you can use normally

• Issued same day (if urgent)

This is the part nobody online explained properly, so I’m explaining it here.

Why I’m Sharing All This

Because I searched everywhere online and found NOTHING.

No guide.

No personal stories.

No step-by-step help.

So if this ever happens to you, or to someone you know, you’ll know exactly what to do, what to expect, and how to stay calm.

And maybe my chaos can help someone else avoid panicking in the middle of Times Square as I did.