EditorMystery ‘foolish student’ sends £100 apology to Swansea shop for drunken prank 15 years later
A Swansea shop owner has been left surprised — and amused — after receiving an unexpected apology from someone admitting to a drunken prank carried out 15 years ago.
Staff at Exotica Foods Swansea say a letter arrived along with £100 in cash from an anonymous sender describing themselves only as “a former foolish student.”
The international food store, located on St Helen’s Road, Swansea, shared the note on social media after it was delivered to the shop.
In the letter, the sender admits that around 15 years ago they and another student took a temporary PVC banner hanging outside the shop after a night of drinking.
The note reads:
“Some 15 years ago as a student, following a night of drinking, I and another came across a temporary PVC banner hanging from your shop.
For some reason we thought it would be funny to bring this home with us.”
But the mystery writer says time — and age — had changed their perspective.
“As an older man, I now see that what seemed funny to us at the time likely caused your shop some inconvenience.
I would like to offer my apology and hope you will accept this compensation.”
The envelope also contained five £20 notes, totalling £100.
The apology was signed simply:
“A former foolish student.”
Shop owner Imran Ashraf shared the story online, joking about the long-delayed confession.
“This has made my morning — thank you to whoever you are,” he wrote.
The post quickly attracted dozens of comments from locals praising the gesture.
Many said it showed that “it’s never too late to do the right thing.”
One commenter wrote: “Better late than never — well done!”
Another added: “We’ve all done stupid things when we were younger. Fair play to him for making it right.”
And one joked: “That must have been one hell of a guilt trip.”
While the identity of the sender remains unknown, the unexpected apology has given the Swansea shop something rare on social media — a story about someone owning up to a mistake and trying to make amends.
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