Criminal Gangs Exploit Security Gaps to Infiltrate Airports

In a restroom stall in the departure hall of St. Thomas airport in the U.S. Virgin Islands, a recently hired worker waited in January with two taped-up bricks of cocaine until he heard the signal: stomping and knocking.

The airport worker reached down and passed the packages, weighing a total of nearly 5 pounds, under the partition separating him from the adjoining stall. His accomplice, whose face he wasn’t meant to see, stuffed them into a red backpack to take with him on a Spirit Airlines flight to Orlando, Fla.

Both were apprehended before the accomplice could board his flight. Court documents show that the worker, who had been with Hyannis, Mass.-based Cape Air for less than a year, was set to make $2,000 for getting the drugs into the departure hall.

The incident is among a spate of criminal activity since the recovery in air travel that has involved so-called airport insiders, those who have access to areas that for passengers would require security checks or be off-limits.

As air travel rebounds from its pandemic-era hibernation, the aviation industry has grappled with widespread disruption, near collisions of aircraft and rising workplace injuries. It is also wrestling with the growing threat of criminal gangs recruiting airport workers, according to law-enforcement authorities, government agencies and security specialists.

“This is a huge challenge,” said Peter Nilsson, head of Airpol, a European law-enforcement group tasked with fighting crime at airports. Tackling insider threats stemming from rapid hiring at airports is among Airpol’s top postpandemic priorities, he said.

Two wrapped bricks of cocaine that were seized in January in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, from a passenger who allegedly received them from an airport worker. Photo: Homeland Security Investigations

“We raised a warning when, after the pandemic, we had all airports more or less in the world rehiring people,” he said.

Similar warnings about criminal groups targeting airport workers to be their accessories have come from the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, the U.K.’s National Crime Agency and Airports Council International, an industry group. A United Nations panel of aviation security experts this year listed the risk posed by airport workers colluding with criminal groups as one of six biggest security concerns currently facing civil aviation.

Airport workers are particularly attractive recruits for criminal organizations. Experts point to examples where baggage handlers have been recruited to shift contraband-filled suitcases from international flights onto domestic carousels, bypassing checks by customs security; runway workers have been tasked with planting narcotics in the panels of aircraft; and customs officials have been paid to wave through bags known to contain illicit items.

While there has always been some degree of threat posed by insiders, experts say the mass hiring after the dropping of pandemic-era travel restrictions has given criminal entities the chance to plant or recruit new accomplices as they work to re-establish their own operations.

Hundreds of thousands of new staff have joined the aviation industry, typically with less experience and security know-how. There has also been an increase in the use of temporary security passes, requiring less-thorough screening, to ease staffing shortages.

“You have the same criminal activities or the same terrorist groups that already wanted to attack aviation. They will find new people,” said Sonia Hifdi, head of aviation security policy at the International Civil Aviation Organization, the United Nations’ aviation arm, which sets international standards for the global industry.

The combination of low pay at a time of high inflation and dissatisfaction among airport workers amid the postpandemic recovery is also making some more susceptible to criminal recruiters, experts warn.

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By Published On: October 3, 2023Categories: UncategorizedComments Off on Criminal Gangs Exploit Security Gaps to Infiltrate Airports

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About the Author: Patriotman

Patriotman currently ekes out a survivalist lifestyle in a suburban northeastern state as best as he can. He has varied experience in political science, public policy, biological sciences, and higher education. Proudly Catholic and an Eagle Scout, he has no military experience and thus offers a relatable perspective for the average suburban prepper who is preparing for troubled times on the horizon with less than ideal teams and in less than ideal locations. Brushbeater Store Page: http://bit.ly/BrushbeaterStore

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