Baggage handlers arrested at JFK Airport for stealing from luggage

Seven baggage handlers have been arrested at JFK Airport in New York after passengers complained about valuables going missing from their luggage.

Authorities said thousands of pounds worth of jewellery and electronics had been stolen from El Al Airlines passengers.

"When air travellers check their luggage with an airline, there is an implicit trust that their bags and their contents will meet them at their destination. It is always disheartening as a traveller to find that trust to be broken," said Queens District Attorney Richard Brown.

According to the New York Post, El Al Airlines, which flies from Israel to JFK Airport, installed hidden cameras inside their Boeing 747 cargo holds.

The seven thieves were found with a £3,200 Seiko watch, iPads, iPhones, gold jewellery, Canon, Sony and Nikon cameras, a PlayStation and a Cartier watch.

New York Daily News reports that police said the suspects wore gloves to unzip the luggage and steal goods from arrival flights.

Brown said: "I applaud El Al Airlines for taking its customer complaints seriously and helping to bring the defendants to justice."

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