FBI arrests 8 SWA employees in ELP

[coolflyingfool]

An article out of the El Paso newspaper said that the FBI arrested 8 SWA employees who over the past 7 years had stolen as much as $1.1 MM from the company. OUCH!
I hate to say it, but shouldn''t someone have caught on sooner. I know they said that there was a loophole, but wow!

 

[Hope777]

Do you have a link to this information?

 

[weatherman]

[blockquote]
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On 3/13/2003 6:54:10 AM Hope777 wrote:

Do you have a link to this information?
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[/blockquote]

Here is the information.

http://www.elpasotimes.com/stories/borderl...312-86536.shtml

 

[KCFlyer]

[blockquote]
----------------
On 3/13/2003 1:49:46 AM coolflyingfool wrote:

An article out of the El Paso newspaper said that the FBI arrested 8 SWA employees who over the past 7 years had stolen as much as $1.1 MM from the company. OUCH!
I hate to say it, but shouldn't someone have caught on sooner. I know they said that there was a loophole, but wow!
----------------
[/blockquote]

They most likely knew much sooner, but these days, if you plan on accusing someone of theft and firing them, you better have the i's dotted and the t's crossed, lest you be charged with "wrongful termination".

 

[ITRADE]

Follow up from CNN:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TRAVEL/03/14/ticke...reut/index.html

 

[wnbubbleboy]

Follow up from CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2003/TRAVEL/03/14/ticke...reut/index.html

Sunday, March 19, 2006 — In the past few days as many as 8 former Southwest Airlines employees in El Paso have been arrested and indicted in a fraud scam that started back in 1996. Those employees are suspected of stealing an estimated $1.1-million dollars from Southwest Airlines.

Here's how the scam worked. The employees would keep the cash given to them by customers who bought a ticket. The customer would receive a ticket, but one that was already used or one that should have been voided.

Back in March 2003 NewsChannel 9 broke the story of the 8 Southwest Airlines employee's being fired. It was believed that five employees were working in a ring, while the three others worked alone.

This past weekend after a three year investigation several of those former Southwest Airlines employees were arrested in connection with that ticketing scam.

Stay with NewsChannel 9 for the very latest on this developing story.

 

[FWAAA]

I'm a little surprised that WN's internal controls were so easily evaded by these enterprising thieves. Established companies usually have pretty sophisticated mechanisms for discovering such fraud - unusual that this went on from 1996 to early 2003.

 

[Diamondbacks2004]

Follow up from CNN news:

EL PASO, Texas (Reuters) -- At least eight former employees at the Southwest Airlines ticket counter in El Paso International Airport allegedly stole $1.1 million from the carrier by pocketing cash from selling tickets that should have been voided, an FBI spokesman said.

The employees have been under investigation since last year and have allegedly been involved in the suspected ticket scam since 1996, Special Agent Art Werge, spokesman for the El Paso FBI office said Thursday.

The employees have been fired and the airline said it is fully cooperating with investigators, a Southwest spokeswoman said.

The Southwest agents allegedly took advantage of transactions in which customers walked up to the counter and made purchases in cash, Werge said.

The agents would supply customers with tickets that should have been voided. These tickets were supposed to be placed in a secure pouch and not sold, he said.

The customers were not aware they were issued tickets that should not have been sold. They were not harmed because they could use those tickets for travel, Werge said.

The agents are suspected of not reporting the cash transactions to the company. Some are suspected of engaging in the scheme as part of an organized ring while others allegedly acted on their own, he said.

"We can't speak specifically about (pressing charges) because there is an ongoing investigation with the FBI," Southwest spokeswoman Angela Vargo said. h34r:

 

[hp-csr-phx]

Last time I checked this is a US Airways thread, not Southwest.

Last time I checked, El Paso was in Texas--not New Mexico.

 

[Seatacus]

How did they get the correct passengers names on the voided tickets?

 

[magsau]

Wow an unscrupulous action by WN! My goodness that is shocking!

 

[ELP_WN_Psgr]

Wow an unscrupulous action by WN! My goodness that is shocking!

I fail to see how this was anything other than an unscrupulous act by WN employees against WN.....unless you are privy to some information that has not yet been made public.

Are you implying, somehow, that WN did something vile that forced their employees to steal? You know, like chop wages and lay off people en masse?

I see this as nothing more and nothing less that the exact opposite of what has been going on over at the legacies.

At Southwest, some employees steal from the company.

At United et al, the company....thru layoffs, furloughs, abrogation of labor contracts, and forced concessions....steals from the employee.

Thanks for clearing that up for us, Magsau.

 

[magsau]

Deleted By Moderator

 

[swflyer]

Congratulations,

That is clearly over-the-line, flame-bait, and I reported it to the moderators.

I'm glad I know better than to think you are in any way a representation of your airline.

 

[ramper_in_las]

I'm a little surprised that WN's internal controls were so easily evaded by these enterprising thieves. Established companies usually have pretty sophisticated mechanisms for discovering such fraud - unusual that this went on from 1996 to early 2003.

at the risk of sounding corny, I would like to think that WN used to think of its people first and foremost. Its sad to say that ELP is not an isolated incident of employees stealing from our company. Now because of a few stupid people we all are going to have big brother constantly looking over our shoulder.