Air traveler follows misplaced baggage to residence of airport shop employee, who faces charges for grand larceny.
Geneus Bazile, aged 29, from Fort Lauderdale, has been charged with grand theft in the third degree. The victim was scheduled to catch a Spirit Airlines flight on March 3 but it got canceled, forcing passengers like Paola Garcia to collect their checked luggage from the baggage belt at Terminal 4.
Garcia had been waiting for her pink roller bag since then, which held valuable items such as an Apple MacBook, Apple iPad, Apple Watch, jewelry, high-end female clothing, and toiletries. Unfortunately, it never appeared on the baggage belt.
Spirit Airlines told Garcia that her bag had been sent to her residence, but it never arrived. So Garcia decided to use an electronic tracker to locate her bag.
Garcia later found out that the ping of her luggage was at an address in Fort Lauderdale. When she went to collect her things from the mentioned address, she couldn't make contact with anyone living there. While at this address, Garcia took photos and videos of the place, and she noticed "several pieces of luggage in the front area, none of which were hers."
When the police officer searched the airport's employee records, they discovered that Bazile, who's not named in the affidavit, was listed as a resident of that address. They also found out that he was employed at a Paradies Lagardère Travel Retail store at the airport and he was working on the day of the theft.
A detective then contacted the store's loss prevention manager who provided them with CCTV footage from the day of the incident. The footage showed Bazile entering the store's storage room with a pink shell roller bag fitting the description of the stolen bag and rummaging through the other luggage. He then removed the MacBook and other smaller items from the bag and placed them in other bags.
The detective showed pictures of a man holding a plastic bag containing a pink suitcase and a laptop to Garcia. After being charged, Belize denied the allegations and posted a $30,000 bond. His next court date has been scheduled for August 23.
CNN attempted to reach out to Bazile and his public defender, while Spirit Airlines issued a reimbursement check to the woman whose suitcase was stolen "as a courtesy" even though they aren't aware of any involvement from their employee.
"I waited for hours for my luggage, and it never came out. So I pinged my electronic items. It showed up at an address." - Paola Garcia.
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After the ordeal with her stolen luggage, Garcia expressed her frustration, stating, "I waited for hours for my luggage, and it never came out. So I pinged my electronic items. It showed up at an address." Additionally, as the situation surrounding the stolen items continues to unfold, it raises questions about the safety and security measures in place at airports and travel retail stores.
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