While walking a busy city street late one summer evening I was approached by a "merchant seaman" who was unfamiliar with the city and needed some help. He flashed a roll of bills and said that he had just been paid and was afraid of being robbed while waiting for his ship to be loaded. My "scam" light flashed, but I didn't know this drill. I suggested the obvious solution of a locker at the bus station. He rejected that. I then suggested that he deposit the cash in the safe at his hotel and started walking him toward the hotel. During our conversation a second person, who had been watching us from nearby, drifted by and asked if anyone needed any help. (scam light flashed brighter) As we walked closer to the hotel, the seaman expressed trust and asked if I could hold the money overnight. I declined and continued to guide him toward the hotel. As we approached the hotel, the second person drifted by again (probably, I wasn't supposed to recognize him) and the seaman announced that if I wasn't going to help him, he would find someone else and both individuals walked off. At this point I was on a pimp's turf and he demanded to know my preference -- girls, boys, etc. This was not a threatening situation, just annoying, funny, and sad. I still hadn't figured out what the scam might have been.

Weeks later the news reported a scam where a person would ask a "responsible" individual to hold money overnight, setting up a meeting for the next day. The mark would be robbed shortly after accepting the money. Being "responsible" the mark would repay the scammer anyway.