Airport Security Safer? Maybe, but Think again! Theft, Security Breaches, Corruption
So you think you are safer flying the shies these days? Think again! Maybe you are, but more and more occurrences appear where those who handle baggage/cargo, screen passengers and/or are involved with the security of air travel related functions are exposed as being Corrupt.The article below is just on of the many that have and are taking place. Here at www.CorruptionCripples.com we will be bringing what can be found out there to you, so keep checking back right here.
Michael Love, IIO
Via
A Minneapolis-St. Paul airport baggage handler was busted this week
after prosecutors say he was caught on tape stealing valuables from the
bags of passengers. David Vang, 23, allegedly walked away with $84,000
worth of passengers' belongings over an eight month period.
Guns, jewelry and watches were among the items prosecutors say he stuffed into his backpack.
Vang faces 11 felony counts of theft.
Brad Garrett, a former FBI special agent and ABC News analyst, said it
would be difficult to stop something like this from happening again.
"You basically can't secure bags because of the sheer volume and the
movement of the bags and the handlers ability to have the bags where no
one's watching him at any given time," he said.
A second airport horror story was also exposed this week when a Delta
Airlines employee allegedly breached security at New York's John F.
Kennedy International Airport.
Marcelino Aponte, 31, was turned away by TSA officials because he did not have a boarding pass for his flight to Orlando.
Authorities say Aponte then used his airport security badge to get
through locked areas and board his flight- completely bypassing any
metal detectors.
TSA told ABC News they responded within nine minutes, however Aponte's flight landed in Orlando before he was detained.
"The reality is if you work at an airline and you're moving around
through the airport from non secure to secure areas, you in effect do
not have to go through TSA clearances each time you go in and out of a
secure area," Garrett said.
Via
Minneapolis airport worker accused of stealing guns, other valuables from luggage
- Article by: PAUL WALSH , Star Tribune
- Updated: April 4, 2013 - 11:25 PM
A behind-the-scenes airport worker is accused of stealing guns, computers, cellphones, cameras and more.
A behind-the-scenes worker at Minneapolis-St. Paul International
Airport is accused of stealing nearly $85,000 in valuables from checked
luggage, including guns.
 |
| David Vang |
David Vang, 23, of St. Paul, was charged by summons in
Hennepin County District Court with 11 counts of felony theft in losses
last summer and fall at Terminal 1, also known as the Lindbergh
terminal.
“Such thefts are rare, but they do occur,” airport
spokesman Patrick Hogan said Thursday. “Nearly 20,000 people work at MSP
International Airport, and while most are honest, law-abiding citizens,
there are likely to be a few in such a large group who aren’t as
trustworthy.”
Precaution advice
Hogan added that the best way for travelers to protect themselves is
to “pack valuables in their carry-on luggage, rather than their checked
luggage, whenever possible.”
Along with 10 firearms retrieved from Vang’s living room
closet, authorities say they uncovered more than 700 other items he
stole, including iPads, laptop computers, projectors, cellphones,
cameras, purses, watches, knives, jewelry and hunting and fishing gear.
Vang was employed at the time by the Dallas area’s Elite Line Services to maintain baggage conveyance systems.
Airport police were led to the thefts after a Delta Air
Lines traveler reported that his bow and electronic items were missing
from his luggage when he arrived in Alaska from Minneapolis, according
to the criminal complaint.
All of the victims were believed to be passengers making
flight connections, because “the items had been electronically scanned
into checked luggage inventory by [MSP] airline employees but were not
among the items scanned as having been loaded onto the aircraft,” Hogan
said.
“One of the challenges is that travelers will often
report missing items only to their airline or only to law enforcement
officials at the airport where they originally checked the bag,” Hogan
added, “not at their destination airport or at the airport where they
caught a connecting flight.
“Many times thefts aren’t reported to us at all, and when they are,
it can be difficult to determine where along the traveler’s route the
crime occurred.”
Cameras aid in case
Police had two hidden cameras installed in the area where
they believed the thefts were occurring. Surveillance footage showed
Vang taking items from luggage and hiding them nearby until his shift
ended, the complaint added.
The surveillance also showed Vang taking the items to an
employee parking ramp, where he put them in a vehicle driven by his
wife, Vue Xiong, according to the charges. Xiong, 21, was charged with
one count of felony theft.
 |
| Vue Xiong |
Under questioning by police, Vang admitted to the theft, the complaint read. Authorities put the value of the items at $84,379.
The defendants, who were charged by summons, could not
immediately be reached for comment. Vang’s first court appearance is set
for April 18, Xiong’s on April 25.
Vang had a security badge issued by police, Hogan said.
Since Vang worked in a secure area, he “had gone through all the federal
background checks, and no disqualifying crimes were identified on his
record,” Hogan added.
Hogan did not know whether his employer ran Van through a
similar security process. A supervisor at the company’s Twin Cities
facility declined to comment on the case.
Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482
And info concerning Marcelino Aponte, 31 via
Delta Airlines employee, Marcelino Aponte, arrested in JFK security breach
Published: April 5, 2013 11:34 AM
JAMAICA - Officials have reported a security breach by an airline employee at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
According to officials, the Delta Airlines employee was arrested for getting onto a flight without a boarding pass.
News 12 Long Island has been told Marcelino Aponte, 31, of the Bronx, skipped security and boarded a flight to Orlando on Wednesday.
The TSA reportedly waited 45 minutes before alerting police about the breach.
Aponte was arrested when his flight landed in Florida. His airport identification will likely be revoked.
According to officials, the Delta Airlines employee was arrested for getting onto a flight without a boarding pass.
News 12 Long Island has been told Marcelino Aponte, 31, of the Bronx, skipped security and boarded a flight to Orlando on Wednesday.
The TSA reportedly waited 45 minutes before alerting police about the breach.
Aponte was arrested when his flight landed in Florida. His airport identification will likely be revoked.
Become AWARE
and
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