How a Man Managed to Steal $23,000 in Cash From Fellow Plane Passengers
If you're traveling by air this holiday season, you might want to keep a close eye on your bags. A Chinese man was just arrested and charged with theft after he allegedly stole cash from three separate passengers to the tune of $23,000.
Fifty-two-year-old Zhang Xiuqiang was traveling from Ho Chi Minh City to Singapore on Dec. 16 when the alleged incident occurred. He was traveling on Scoot, the budget airline sibling of Singapore Airlines, and seemingly wanted to add to the money he saved by flying on the low-cost airline.
According to the charges, Zhang allegedly stole from three different passengers on the flight, lifting 3 million Vietnamese dong ($123) from one passenger's backpack, 510 million Vietnamese dong ($20,950) and 50 Singapore dollars ($38) from another person's bag, and another $1000 and 930 Singapore dollars ($700) from a third bag.
"Our cabin crew was alerted by a passenger to a suspected theft in the cabin and activated the Airport Police Division,” a spokesperson told CNN. "The involved passengers were escorted off the aircraft by airport authorities for further investigation, and disembarkation proceeded as usual for the rest of our passengers."
"Our operating crew are trained to be vigilant and alert authorities of any suspicious behavior on board our flights," the airline noted. "We also advise our customers to safeguard their valuables at all times."
On-board theft is no laughing matter and can result in some pretty serious penalties regardless of where you are in the world thanks to the Tokyo Convention Act. If convicted, Zhang could face up to three years in jail, a fine, or both for each charge.
