Imam Ali (peace be upon him) had been sitting in the mosque of Kufah when Abdullah Ibn Qufl, a Jew belonging to the tribe of Tameem, passed by him (peace be upon him) carrying a coat of mail.
As soon as the Imam’s (peace be upon him) eyes fell upon the coat of mail, he exclaimed: This belonged to Talhah Ibn Abdullah and had come into my possession as my share of the booty in the battle of Basrah. This is treachery (on the part of the Jew).
The Jew agreed to accompany the Imam (peace be upon him) before the judge, who in reality had been appointed by the Imam (peace be upon him) himself. Both of them approached the judge whose name was Shuraih.6 When the Imam (peace be upon him) put forth his claim, Shuraih said: Present witnesses to testify and corroborate your claim. Imam Ali (peace be upon him) brought his son Hasan (peace be upon him) as his witness, but Shuraih said: The testimony of one person is not sufficient (according to one narration, he refused to accept the testimony of a son in favour of his father).7
The Imam (peace be upon him) then presented his slave Qanbar as his witness but Shuraih said: I shall not issue a verdict based upon the testimony of a slave.
Hearing these words, the Imam (peace be upon him) was disturbed and turning to the Jew he (peace be upon him) said: Take the coat of mail and go your way for this judge has ruled falsely and incorrectly three times.
Shuraih asked: What are the three rulings that have been false and incorrect?
The Imam (peace be upon him) replied: Woe unto you! There is no need for witness in issues pertaining to treachery and disloyalty (it is the responsibility of the owner to present witnesses to prove how he has come to become the owner of the possession.)
Secondly, I presented Hasan (peace be upon him) as my witness but you refused to accept him, whereas the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) used to pass judgments on the basis of one witness if the claimant would take an oath (testifying to his own truthfulness). Thirdly, Qanbar had testified but you said that you would not pass a ruling on the basis of a slave’s testimony; however, the truth is that if a slave is just (and upright) his testimony needs to be accepted.
Woe unto you! The Imam of the Muslims, in important affairs, is trustworthy so how can his claim not be acceptable?
The Jew who had been a witness to the entire conversation, exclaimed: Subhanallah! The Caliph of the Muslims accompanies me before a judge; the judgment is passed against him and he complies with the verdict! O’ Amirul Mu’mineen (peace be upon him) you have spoken the truth. This coat of mail belongs to you; it had fallen down from your saddlebag and I had picked it up.
He then testified to the Unity of God and the Prophethood of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) and became a Muslim. Imam (peace be upon him) gifted him the coat of mail and also rewarded him with nine hundred dirhams.( Paighambar Wa Yaaraan, vol. 3, pg. 286; Bihaar al-Anwaar, vol. 4, pg. 302. )