Hands up all those who have lost a credit card at some point in their shopping lives.

I have. But then I've also lost every piece of jewelery that's been given to me. I lost my wedding ring - twice. I lost my gold tie pin - how do you lose those things? I lost a sterling silver wrist chain, necklaces, watches...the list is endless.

Last summer I even had the unfortunate experience of leaving my credit card at a retail booth at a large conference. The chances of tracking a lost credit card down when you have no way of contacting anyone about it, are fairly remote. Instead, I phoned my credit provider and had them cancel the card and reissue me with a new one.

It's a little inconvenient but it's not an insurmountable experience.

Unless, of course, you happen to lose your credit card in the middle of an armed robbery. And you're the felon.

Then the situation becomes a little more tenable and inconvenience is no longer the issue.

This is exactly what happened to this 24 year old who is facing a jail sentence after leaving his credit card at the scene of the crime. In most situations, the average customer would be more than happy to receive a phone call from the police informing them that their credit card has been recovered. Not in this situation.

It reminds me of Amex's advertising slogan - "Don't leave home (or the scene of a crime) without it."