Failing to deliver a trust

Question

Question: A person gives Zayd something so that he will deliver it to Umar, and Zayd, in a gathering, firmly promises: “I will certainly deliver it.” Then, despite insistent demands, he refuses, and he does not return it to the giver either. Does Zayd deserve, according to the Shariʿa, to be called religious and trustworthy (amin), and may he be made a national or communal leader or worker?

Answer

The question is very brief. It would have been better had Zayd’s statement also been enclosed, so that it might be known what the reason is for his not delivering that trust and not returning it. Might that thing be Zayd’s own property, which had somehow reached Umar or the one who handed it over, and now that it has come into Zayd’s possession he has refused to give it?

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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