TIA baggage handlers face stolen property charges

TAMPA -- Three baggage handlers were arrested by Tampa International Airport police Friday for dealing in stolen property taken from passengers' luggage.

Authorities said the men were subcontractors who worked for Delta Global Services, a company hired by Continental Airlines. An arrest report listed several recovered stolen items that included laptops, cell phones, digital cameras, sunglasses and a GPS device.

Detectives say they are working to find all the victims, and a TIA spokeswoman had no comment, citing an ongoing investigation.

Among those arrested, Ernie A. Azucey, 23, of 8510 N Hyaleah Rd., Tampa, has the heftiest bond at $247,500. Police charged him with 33 counts of dealing in stolen property.

Efrain "Junjo" Malave-Bermudez Jr., 34, of 6720 S Lois Ave., Apt. 7108, Tampa, faces seven counts of dealing in stolen property. His bond has been set at $52,500.

Charged with four counts of dealing in stolen property, Juan David Ayende-Nieves, 52, of 2004 E Lave Ave, Apt. D, is the only man among the three to post bail and be released. His bond was set at $30,000.

Continental officials tracked the thefts through a laptop outfitted with a tracking device by Absolute Software Security Co. The airline placed the laptop on a Houston-bound flight on March 12 and reported it stolen to airport police in Houston when it never arrived.

The tracking device would initiate once someone activated the laptop and connected it to the Internet, the arrest report said.

The security company's software system detected the computer's use on March 25 when an unidentified woman used it to access a MySpace account. She continued using the Internet the next two days, and on Friday, detectives contacted her. She told investigators that the laptop came from her boyfriend's father, Ayende-Nieves, one of the baggage handlers.

When investigators contacted Ayende-Nieves, police said he told them that he believed the property was stolen because it was so cheap. He said he bought the laptop for $350 from Azucey.

An arrest report says that Azucey told police he brought the laptop from a man named Rene Lopez, whom he had seen steal property from checked bags in the past. Information on Lopez's connection, charges or possible arrest weren't immediately available.

From Azucey's home, detectives recovered a Dell laptop, three cell phones, five digital cameras, nine pair of sunglasses, two FM transmitters, two iPods, a Garmin GPS device, seven phone charges, an MP3 player, a calculator, a card reader and three pair of headphones. Police said Azucey told them he purchased all those items from Lopez.

-Kevin Graham, Times staff writer