Over 3,700 Claims For More Than $300 Million In Goods Since 2001

A recent sting operation conducted by the Los Angeles Police Department at Los Angeles International Airport resulted in the arrest of two baggage handlers and the recovery of 272 stolen items and over $10,000 in cash.

In the biggest passenger theft bust in LAX's history, police recovered dozens of purses, cameras, computers, designer sunglasses, and currency from more than a dozen countries, Los Angeles' KCBS-2 said.

On October 30, undercover officers from the LAPD arrested baggage handlers Roman Jaime and Carlos Garcia right out on the ramp at LAX. Investigation revealed many of the flights they worked had reports of thefts from baggage, which brought them under police scrutiny.

Federal government reports of stolen item claims from luggage over the past seven and a half years indicate passengers at LAX have filed 3,793 missing items claims, representing over $306 million in personal losses -- more than at any other airport in the US. JFK ranks second with 2,768 claims, while Newark comes in third with 2,721 claims.

Two LAX employees, who agreed to talk to reporters only if their identities were concealed, described organized rings of thieves. Identifying valuables in checked luggage by looking at TSA X-ray screens, the thieves communicate with baggage handlers by text or cell phone, telling them exactly what to look for, they said.

Although LAX officials claim overall crime at the airport is down this year, more than 30 employees at LAX were arrested for theft in just the first nine months of 2008.

FMI: www.lawa.org