Thieves caught from Bush Int'l. Airport luggage heist.

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Luggage thefts an inside job, officials say

Five contractors who worked in 'secure' sections of Bush airport are facing charges

By MIKE GLENN

2007 Houston Chronicle

The theft of dozens of pieces of luggage found in a trash bin near George Bush Intercontinental Airport last week appears to be an inside job, police said, after the arrest over the weekend of five contract workers and the discovery of more stolen bags.

The five men worked for British-based Menzies Aviation Group, which provides ground services and luggage handling at several airports in the United States and throughout the world. A spokesman for Menzies did not return calls for comment, but police said the company has cooperated in the ongoing investigation.

In a statement, company officials said an internal investigation is under way.

The baggage was taken from flights that were connecting through Houston to other destinations, Houston police officials said.

"These were not stolen from the terminals," said Capt. Rick Bownds, with Houston Police Department's airport division. "They were stolen as they were making connections through secure sections of the airport."

In a three-day roundup that began Friday and ended Sunday, police arrested Erick Perez, 28; Daniel Venegas, 25; Carlos Osorio, 24; and twin brothers Ricardo and Manuel Aguilar, 23. Each was charged with engaging in organized criminal activity.

Although none was employed directly by the Houston Airport System, which manages Bush and Hobby Airport, each had passed a background check required of anyone whose duties take him onto airport property, authorities said.

"They worked in the baggage-handling areas," Bownds said. "They had proper credentials to be in the secure section."

Though all vehicles that provide services to the airport are checked when they arrive, authorities said that's not the case for those leaving.

"Everything coming in gets searched, (but) the problem here was that the bags were going out," Bownds said.

That apparent oversight raises questions about security at the airport, said Houston attorney Joe Gutheinz, a former security official with the FAA.

"The key thing is that they are stealing bags from what should be about the most secure area in Houston," said Gutheinz. "If they can walk bags out of the airport like that, they can walk drugs out of the airport just as easily."

Houston Airport System spokeswoman Marlene McClinton said the security plans are "comprehensive and layered" — and include video cameras, HPD officers who work inside the terminals and personnel who patrol the perimeter on horseback.

"It is the No. 1 goal — safety and security — but the details of the security procedures or systems is not something that we can discuss," McClinton said.

More pieces recovered

In addition to the 68 bags discovered the day after Christmas, police also recovered 90 other pieces at two locations over the weekend.

Bownds would not disclose those locations, citing the pending investigation.

"This is the largest recovery of stolen baggage that I'm aware of since I've been at the airport," Bownds said. "If we keep turning up baggage, it (the investigation) is going to go on for a while."

The capture of the luggage-theft ring operating from inside the airport could result in additional security procedures, Bownds said.

Investigating stolen luggage is a challenge, Bownds said, because the victims can be spread throughout the U.S. and beyond.

But, "with this case — with that many bags together — we pretty much had a presumption of theft and it turned out to be true," he said.

Officials at other large airports said they haven't encountered such a far-reaching stolen baggage ring.

"We have had some luggage theft, (but) mostly that occurs in the baggage-claim area," said Richard Duncan, security director at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson Airport.

Chuck Cannon, a spokesman for Denver International Airport, also said it hasn't encountered such a ring.

"We do get the odd (stolen) bag, and I think they've busted people for taking several bags at a time," Cannon said.

Duncan and Cannon both declined to comment on the security arrangements at their airports.

The airlines' role

McClinton said luggage security is the responsibility of the airline when the items are being transferred among connecting flights.

Continental Airlines took custody of the initial haul of stolen luggage discovered Dec. 26 outside a pet store in the 200 block of Bammel Westfield.

"The five suspects who have been arrested are employed by a contractor providing services to various airlines — not including Continental," the airline said in a statement. "We assisted law enforcement officials in investigating the case, but Continental employees were not implicated in the investigation."

A spokesman for the Houston-based carrier declined to comment later Tuesday about the steps it takes to ensure luggage security.

Bownds said the investigation is ongoing and more arrests may be made.

Four of the men remain in the Harris County Jail with bail set at $20,000.

Venegas was released Monday after he posted a $10,000 bond.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headli...ro/4440299.html

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