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Airport fears confirmed: Two baggage handlers charged with rifling through luggage and stealing stuff
By adamg on Wed, 02/29/2012 - 5:26pm
Some of the recovered items. Photo from Suffolk County DA.
Two Logan Airport baggage handlers were arraigned today on charges they stole thousands of dollars' worth of electronics, tobacco and cash from luggage at Terminal E, which mostly handles international flights.
LaShawn Fontenot, 25, of Lynn, and Joshua Wright, 25, of Mattapan, were arrested yesterday in the baggage area, according to State Police. Wright allegedly had some freshly stolen goods on his person; additional stolen stuff was recovered from both their houses, State Police say.
State Police say Massport contacted them several weeks ago about complaints of thefts from checked luggage.
Both were arraigned in East Boston District Court today on single charges of larceny over $250, but additional charges are expected, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports. East Boston District Court Judge Roberto Ronquillo, Jr., released them on their own recognizance with orders to stay away from Logan while their cases are pending.
Innocent, etc.
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Comments
Was just in Africa
I paid to have my bag wrapped. Will have to start doing that here apparently.
Lowest of the Low
If proven guilty, these guys should be on the no fly list for life.
aaand
We've known this for a while that this has been going on. Anyone who travels internationally can tell you they've had their bag come off the conveyor with a tag that says "Opened by TSA".
Of course nothing will be done because thanks to the TSA and the Patriot Act they have a right to open your luggage. So again whats stopping anyone? Nothing..
They weren't TSA employees,
They weren't TSA employees, they were baggage handlers. Read the article again
Yes, but
Thanks to the TSA, you aren't allowed to lock your luggage anymore.
Locking zippered luggage
Putting a lock on the zipper pulls of your luggage is absolutely meaningless. A pen or other thin pointed object can push apart a closed zipper in seconds. Then, you open the bag and take what you want. To close it, you just have to run the still-locked-together pair of zipper pulls back and forth once.
My parents used to have a zipper that only locked once it reached the end of the zipper where it inserted into a locking brace. There are companies that sell straps that feed into your luggage lock and keep the zippers from moving past your bag's handles. Something like that is the only way to stop them from resealing the bag by preventing your zipper pulls from moving (so you immediately know they popped your zipper). The only other way would be to use a different mechanism other than a zipper.
Pretty dumb
They were contacted about a pending investigation into stealing, and then kept at it? Not the brightest bulbs.
But who said
criminals were smart? - from The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974 version)
Photograph the Contents
Take a picture of the contents of your suitcase and then send it to yourself. That gives it a time stamp and you have the picture if your camera or computer is stolen.
I do this whenever I fly if I have anything worth anything in my checked luggage. It doesn't keep things from being stolen, but it can help verify a theft and aid with recovery.