A 68-year-old Brazilian gynecologist was arrested on Sunday at the Miami International Airport on charges of opening other people's luggage in the baggage claim area and taking belongings from passengers, according to several local media.
The suspect has been identified as Marcos Danilo Assuncao-Oliveira, who is facing three counts of third-degree grand theft, a crime in Florida that can result in up to five years in prison.
What the cameras captured
The incident occurred last Friday in the carousel area of American Airlines.
The surveillance cameras recorded Assuncao-Oliveira lurking in the area before starting to remove luggage from various conveyor belts.
According to the arrest report from the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office, the suspect "was taking several pieces of luggage from different carousels, opening them, taking what was inside, and then putting the luggage back on the carousel."
The authorities indicated that he repeated the process several times and left the airport on foot with the stolen items.
The total value of the stolen items was estimated at approximately 1,350 dollars.
Three victims have been identified, although investigators do not rule out the possibility that there are more affected passengers.
The contrast between the police report and his professional records in Brazil
The case presents a detail that has attracted attention: although the police report lists Assuncao-Oliveira as a person without a fixed address in Miami, Brazilian medical websites identify him as a gynecologist with a private practice in Belo Horizonte, state of Minas Gerais, with professional registration number CRMMG 14373.
Another element mentioned in the police report is that the suspect did not have active flights with American Airlines in the six months prior to the incident.
The report did not explain why it was in that area of the airport.
During his appearance before a judge this Monday, the bail was initially set at $1,100.
However, later records from the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center —where he was held until Tuesday afternoon— indicated that the amount rose to 7,500 dollars.
Airport authorities and local police have asked any passenger who has noticed lost belongings in the American Airlines area to contact the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office to assist with the investigation.
Increase in thefts at Miami airport
The arrest of the Brazilian doctor adds to a series of similar cases reported at Miami airport over the past few months.
Just days earlier, an employee of the contractor company Eulen was arrested in Hialeah for selling a Cartier Santos watch forgotten by a passenger for only $1,500, while its actual value ranged from $5,900 to over $12,000.
In mid-August, 41-year-old James Dickson Silk was arrested after confessing that he had been living inside the airport and had stolen a suitcase containing around $9,000 worth of belongings in the American Airlines area.
In July, two men were arrested for stealing over $27,000 in luggage from the airport carousels.
In all these cases, surveillance cameras have been the key tool for identifying suspects and reconstructing their modus operandi.
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