Police discover nearly 1,000 stolen suitcases
Detectives find luggage at couple's residence in Waddell
by Michael Ferraresi - Nov. 4, 2009 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic .
The suitcases were stacked without identification tags, the owners' names erased from the bags they never picked up at Sky Harbor International Airport.

Detectives uncovered nearly 1,000 pieces of stolen luggage Tuesday while serving a search warrant at a home in the northwest Valley, linking the items to Keith King, who's accused of plucking the bags off airport baggage carousels.

Phoenix police found the bags at a home in Waddell, 35 miles from the airport, many emptied - a property crime considered rare despite the flow of more than 200,000 people each day through Sky Harbor.
Police officers arrested King three weeks ago at the airport after an officer noticed him grabbing a random bag off one of the carousels. He was given a misdemeanor-theft citation and released, though police said he returned to the airport days later.

King, 61, was shown on a surveillance video parking in an airport garage and walking to the baggage-claim area to steal luggage, said Officer James Holmes, a Phoenix police spokesman.

King and his wife, Stacy Legg King, 38, were arrested Monday at their home near Northern and 175th avenues. They were booked on suspicion of theft and possession of stolen property - leaving detectives to try and track the missing items, which could include electronics and clothes, among other things.

"This is going to be a long investigation," Holmes said. "We can't establish what he did with the property inside the bags at this point."

Airport officials found no record of the Kings ever working at the airport.

The Phoenix arrests likely would not trigger any immediate airport security policy changes, according to police and airport authorities.

"It is 1,000 bags, and we're very concerned about it, but it's a rare occurrence," said Sky Harbor spokeswoman Deborah Ostreicher.

Airport officials said they will discuss security measures, such as reinstituting routine baggage-claim checks to ensure bags are picked up by the correct passengers. Checks were eliminated several years ago to cut costs.

Phoenix officers regularly patrol baggage-claim areas, which fall outside of the Transportation Security Administration's jurisdiction, said Phoenix Cmdr. Eric Hailey, who oversees the Phoenix Police Airport Bureau.

Sgt. Jim Holcomb, who oversees police at Los Angeles International Airport, said airport-property crime is difficult to track. Airports like Newark, N.J., and Portland, Ore., have dealt in the past two years with investigations into airline employees stealing electronics.

Airlines typically receive missing-luggage complaints, forwarding the complaints to the U.S. Department of Transportation to track by airline.

Police were unclear on which terminals or airlines the Kings targeted.

"It's a huge problem in other airports and I think it's a sign of the economy," said Bill Heher, an Orlando resident who arrived at Sky Harbor for a business trip.

Travelers who believe they were victimized can call Phoenix police at 602-495-7808.


Reporter D'Aundra Wallace contributed to this article.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2009/11/04/20091104luggage1104.html

Pics?

Those cops need some baggage handlers to load the uhaul.


Busted by one cop paying attention.

Wow, I can only imagine how much that cost the airlines, and how much inconvenience and aggravation there was for hundreds of people.  I second the "lynch them" motion.  

Your point is not mistaken.

It's amazing the things a police officer who takes his job seriously and observers things can discover vs those who skate by, like any other job.

I have some officers ask me how I make so many cases, pay attention to the small things.