USA 
United Kingdom
When we employ staff, we entrust them with the responsibility of upholding the company’s ethics and practices. However, a recent case highlights a huge lapse in these ethics.
It was confided this week that a Spirit Airlines passenger managed to track her stolen luggage to the home of an airport employee.
Paola Garcia, a student who usually travels with her pink, hard-shell suitcase as a carry-on, was forced to check her bag on a recent Spirit Airlines flight.
Upon arriving at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, she discovered her luggage was missing.
While Garcia was waiting, an employee at one of the airport’s retail stores, Junior Bazile, had her missing luggage.
Surveillance footage obtained by Local 10 revealed Bazile rifling through Garcia’s suitcase, removing a MacBook, two Apple watches, an iPad, and several designer clothing items before placing the luggage in a clear plastic bag.
Despite reassurances from Spirit Airlines staff, Garcia's concern grew. The next morning, her Apple Watch signaled from a location just 15 minutes away from the airport.
Determined to recover her belongings, Garcia decided to track down her suitcase herself.
Local 10 reported that Garcia found multiple suitcases scattered around the address.
A Broward County Sheriff’s Office detective linked the address to Bazile using the airport’s internal database. When police confronted Bazile, he had allegedly disposed of the stolen items.
Prosecutors have since charged him with grand theft. If convicted of third-degree grand theft, Bazile could face up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Spirit Airlines issued a statement to Local 10, explaining that they provided Garcia with a reimbursement check as a courtesy.
"We issued a reimbursement check to the guest as a courtesy, even though we are not currently aware of any evidence that any Spirit employee was involved.
We take any allegation of this nature seriously, and we are investigating," the airline representative said. The Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport spokesperson stated that passenger bags are the responsibility of each airline, adding that it remains unclear how Bazile came into possession of Garcia’s luggage.
Paradise Shops, the retail company that employed Bazile, confirmed his termination and assured the public of their full cooperation with local authorities.
