Hidden Camera Sting Caught Dozens Involved In Thefts

Police in Italy have released a video showing baggage handlers rifling through passenger's luggage in the cargo holds of airplanes and stealing cash and other valuables. In all, 29 baggage handlers were arrested in the sting, according to the Associated Press, with another 57 taken in for questioning, according to UPI and the London newspapers the Telegraph and The Daily Mail.

The baggage handlers, who are all employees of Alitalia, according to CNN, could face prison sentences of up to six years.

The investigation began in 2011 at the airport serving Lamezia Terme in Southern Italy. The airport deputy police chief Ferruccio Martucci said that pressure and temperature sensitive cameras were placed in the cargo holds of some of the airline's airplanes, which allowed authorities to identify the employees they believed to be responsible for the crimes. The cameras caught not only the thefts, but some baggage handlers who damaged or destroyed luggage that either they were unable to open or did not contain something they deemed worth stealing.

CNN reports that the charges range from theft to aggravated theft and damage.

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