A group of workers from Air Europa based at Madrid-Barajas Airport has been implicated in a significant fraud, scamming thousands of euros from the Grupo Globalia company through the handling of hundreds of unregistered baggage items.
Deceptive Check-In Scheme
The modus operandi of the fraud involved employees contacting passengers upon their arrival via taxi or other transports, offering a special Check-in service without waiting.
These Air Europa check-in workers did not register the baggage in the official system and charged passengers a reduced fee outside the system. This abnormal situation was observed mainly in serving passengers on flights to Honduras.
According to the Spanish media outlet Vozpópuli, an investigation led by the Juzgado de Instrucción Número 15 in Madrid is underway, focusing on charges of fraud and membership in a criminal group.
On November 21, the Globalia Human Resources Operations Director reported abnormal behaviors by some Air Europa baggage check-in employees. It was discovered they were using «unauthorized» software procedures to register large quantities of luggage as ‘free‘ in the system.
Security Risk
This fraudulent activity not only caused financial losses for Air Europa but also posed a security risk, as many bags exceeded the authorized weight limits and were not included in the aircraft’s cargo manifest.
Passengers were charged approximately 80 euros per bag, a rate lower than Air Europa’s official excess baggage fees, resulting in substantial profits for the scammers and losses for the operator.
Several witnesses reported that some of the individuals involved in the scheme were not authorized airport personnel, operating illegally and engaging in unauthorized luggage wrapping services.
The Judicial Police Unit of the Guardia Civil at Barajas Airport is actively investigating the matter. According to lawyer Alfredo Arrien Paredes, there are currently a total of eight people under investigation for alleged fraud and membership in a criminal group.
