Cabin thiever: don’t become a victim

By Terry Riley

Travel columnist

updated 2:01 p.m. ET April 20, 2005

There is little question that unruly passengers continue to be an in-flight danger. But there is another menace that may be on board your flight, too. This one is less dangerous but also less detectable. It’s the cabin thief.

Theft of belongings from coat closets, from under passenger seats, and from overhead bins is not uncommon. While statistics are hard to come by, I’ve heard enough anecdotes from those in the know to convince me that on-board theft is not an insignificant problem.

For instance, there is the case of a woman who made a living—a good one at that—by stealing credit cards from the purses and wallets of passengers aboard long-haul flights. She chose overnight, transoceanic flights because (1) there is plenty of time to plan and carry out the thefts, (2) there is a time in the flights when many of the passengers are sleeping and lighting in the cabin is dim, and (3) victims are unlikely to discover the thefts until the perpetrator is long gone.

The woman was finally nabbed as she deplaned in Japan after completing a round-trip theft-a-thon where she collected several hundred credit cards from coats, jackets, purses, and bags stored in the overhead compartments of the jumbo jets she was prowling.

Certainly the potential consequences of cabin theft is nowhere near as serious as an out-of-control passenger, but it is a major inconvenience at best to have your credit cards pinched while you’re snoozing at 30,000 feet.

To prevent becoming a victim of cabin theft, follow these few, simple rules when packing your personal effects and when stowing your luggage.

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