The TSA security line can make a victim out of you if you don’t know about one danger. A YouTuber recently revealed how criminals strategically target busy security lines at airports to carry out robberies. Here’s what you need to keep an eye out for if you have upcoming travel plans.
Standard TSA procedure requires you to go through the security checkpoint before you board your flight. Passengers are required to go through a screening process, where it is mandatory to get their carry-on bags checked. According to their website, the TSA screens approximately 3.3 million carry-on bags on a daily basis.
Megan, who is a YouTuber, and has a channel called Portable Professional (Travel Tips with Megan). The YouTuber who has taken over 300 flights in her life claimed that the TSA security line is the “riskiest” place to protect your valuables. She went on to explain how it is highly likely to get your belongings stolen regardless of the high security.
“Ironically, one of the riskiest places for theft is where you’re surrounded by security personnel: the TSA checkpoint,” Megan began. She noted how people often get distracted in removing their shoes and emptying their pockets. This is when thieves strike, right when the belongings are fully “exposed and vulnerable.”
TSA Agents caught on surveillance video stealing hundreds of dollars in cash from passengers’ bags at Miami airport. pic.twitter.com/LhFW9yNRNV
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) September 13, 2023
The YouTuber shares that airport thieves usually have two methods they rely on to rob people. In the first approach, thieves team up to carry out a strategic robbery. “One person clears security while their partner deliberately stalls the line after your bags have been loaded onto the conveyor belt,” Meghan notes. This way, the thief can easily get their hands on your belongings before you have even cleared out the body scan.
In the second approach, the person picks up your belongings when you are delayed in the scanning process. The thief manages to steal a small valuable from your tray, “and then quickly conceals it in their own bag.” These incidents have been seen in several countries across the world.
A 2018 Daily Mail report revealed that personal belongings that passengers put in trays were being stolen at the London airport. A flyer named Antonia was “devastated” when her luxury cosmetics worth £300 were stolen off a tray at the security conveyor belt.
Fernanda Ardiles, an economics student, had her laptop worth £1,000 stolen at the security line. Ardiles’ laptop was stolen by someone after she faced a delay in the security queue.
Another peculiar incident took place in America at one of the airports when a woman named Amber Ward became a victim. Surprisingly, Amber got one of her shoes stolen after placing it on the conveyor belt. The TSA officers tried to help her find it for the 20 minutes that followed. But the shoe simply “was not there.”
