Jan 14, 2009 11:00 pm US/Eastern
How Safe Is Your Luggage At Logan Airport?
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
It now costs more than ever to check bags with all the new luggage fees imposed by the airlines. But it may be costing travelers even more, if their luggage ends up missing or stolen.
An I-Team investigation found that there is a patchwork of security systems at Logan Airport, and that makes it easy for luggage to fall through the cracks.
An endless stream of luggage can come around the carousel at the airport, but it might as well be on a roulette wheel because someone is bound to walk away a loser. One traveler said he won't check anything valuable anymore because he is "afraid it will be pilfered by the baggage handlers." He said that there have been situations where he has lost items that he packed.
Another traveler echoed those concerns, saying he is concerned about what he has to check in his luggage.
LOGAN MISSING LUGGAGE COMPLAINTS
There appears to be cause for those concerns. The I-Team examined a federal data base and found that over the past seven years, 1,371 claims for missing or stolen luggage have been filed just with the Transportation Security Administration at Logan Airport. The total value of those claims is more than $1.6 million.
Boston-based security expert Robert Siciliano thinks that number is probably even higher as additional cases go unreported.
TSA INSPECTS LUGGAGEÂ ON CAMERA
George Naccara is in charge of the TSA at Logan. He says federal authorities only open a bag if it sets off an alarm and is believed to pose a security threat.
When asked how they make sure that employees aren't stealing items from bags during inspections, he pointed to the number of security cameras deployed throughout the inspection area.
"We have close circuit cameras throughout these baggage areas, so every action, every inspection by any TSA person, having to do with a bag, is on film," Naccara said.
There is a room filled with closed circuit TV screens, which are monitored around the clock. But the TSA workers only watch a small portion of the trip your luggage makes without you. Most of the time, it's in the hands of airline personnel.
WHEN AIRLINES HANDLE LUGGAGE
The I-Team gained access to areas where baggage is handled by airline workers. Unlike the TSA facilities, there are no cameras in many of these areas. So when a bag comes through after being checked by a passenger, it is essentially out of the surveillance zone.
Siciliano says of airport security that, "It's easier to steal someone's luggage than it is to break into a car, or break into a house."
He added that, "When you drop your luggage off there are so many people handling it, a tremendous lack of oversight, that chances are , at any given time, somebody can open up your luggage, see what is of value and they can take what they want."
WOULD MORE CAMERAS HELP?
George Naccara added that he more closed circuit TVs spread around the airport might be helpful as a deterrent.
He might have a point. The I-Team obtained State police reports of larcenies at Logan Airport in 2008. It is clear that there are gaps in coverage because of the lack of cameras.
One report from last August details a passenger's loss of jewelry, including $2,000 diamond earrings.
The investigating officer wrote ". . . There are no video surveillance cameras situated within the area where the luggage is loaded. . ."
In another case a remote wheelchair and a duffel bag were reported stolen. Again the investigating officer reported, "There was no video in that area to view."
Much of the responsibility for baggage is with the airlines, but there are problems there, too. One of the State police reports indicated that an Air Tran employee had been fired last January for stealing.
NO UNIFORM SECURITY STANDARDS
One of the issues is the lack of a uniform approach to prevent thefts by the airlines. In a written statement, the Air Transport Authority told the I-Team, "Every carrier has some means of surveillance, whether it's people or electronic, designed to stop theft of passenger property."
Siciliano responded that "the system is broken. There's a lack of accountability."
Luggage can also be at risk in public areas. Siciliano pointed out that Logan operates on an honor system. No tickets checked, no questions asked.
Take the case of Christopher Jemery. All those bags coming off the conveyor belt might have been too much temptation for him. The I-Team caught up with him at a court hearing. He's accused of stealing two bags off the JetBlue carousel at Logan last spring.
Siciliano says that travelers need to be aware of these potential flaws in the system and keep everything of value in sight. Siciliano summed it up this way: "Understand that there are three types of luggage: carry-on, lost, or stolen."
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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