Bag-tag switching cases raise concerns for Canadian travellers

At least 17 innocent passengers on flights originating in Canada were detained on drug-smuggling allegations over the past year after their baggage tags were allegedly switched onto suitcases containing drugs.

The cases were identified by CTV News’ investigative unit W5, which compiled the information through court records, news releases and police sources.

All of the passengers were later released, but some were handcuffed, arrested and jailed overseas before being cleared.

The cases involved flights from Canada to the Dominican Republic, Paris, Germany, Morocco, Bermuda, the Philippines and Korea. 

In some countries, drug smuggling can carry the death penalty.

Over the past year, the RCMP has arrested six baggage and ramp workers at Toronto Pearson International Airport in connection with alleged bag-tag switching cases.

The figures only include incidents where drugs were found. 

It is not known how many passengers may have had their names unknowingly used to move drugs internationally.

How the scheme works

According to W5, bag-tag switching can happen quickly.

In the alleged scheme, a corrupt airport worker removes a luggage tag from an unsuspecting passenger’s bag and attaches it to another suitcase filled with drugs.

Toronto Pearson has 3,000 security cameras, but W5 reports there are blind spots in restricted areas. 

If the suitcase containing drugs reaches its destination undetected, someone retrieves it. 

If it is intercepted, the passenger named on the bag tag can be left to answer for it.

W5 highlighted the case of Nicole, a 35-year-old Toronto woman who was travelling with her family to Auckland, New Zealand, when Canada Border Services Agency officers boarded the aircraft during a layover in Vancouver.

Passengers were seated for the 14-hour flight when officers came onboard shortly before departure.

Nicole was taken off the plane and told she was being detained for transporting narcotics.

Certified copies of border officers’ notes obtained by W5 show two suitcases tested positive for suspected narcotics. 

Nicole said officers opened the luggage in secondary screening.

Nicole told officers the bag was not hers, despite the fact that a baggage tag bearing her name was attached to it.

“How do you argue that it’s a tag with my name,” she said. “How do I deny that that’s not mine?”

According to a Canada Border Services Agency report cited by W5, the luggage contained eight packages of suspected methamphetamine weighing 20.52 kilograms, or more than 45 pounds. Nicole was arrested.

She was released about seven hours after her arrest. 

W5 says it is not clear what led to her release, but Nicole believes airport surveillance may have shown the suitcases she checked did not match the drug-filled bags bearing her luggage tags.

When the family later arrived in Auckland, their actual luggage was in the unclaimed baggage area with rush tags attached. 

Rush tags are used by airport employees for bags that have been delayed, mishandled or separated from their owner.

W5 reports that tracking devices were found hidden inside the drug-filled bags, which Nicole believes were intended to allow the people behind the scheme to monitor the luggage.

The alleged switch in Nicole’s case is believed to have happened at Toronto Pearson. No arrests have been made in her case.

Canadians jailed in Dominican Republic

W5 also reported on three Canadians who were jailed in the Dominican Republic after a bag-tag switching case at Toronto Pearson allegedly linked them to suitcases filled with drugs.

Dominican customs released video of the travellers being led away to face charges of importing 79 packages of Canadian marijuana into the country.

The charges were later dropped after authorities determined the marijuana-filled suitcases did not belong to them, but the travellers were stuck in the Dominican Republic for months.

What travellers can do

Travellers can reduce their risk by taking photos or videos of their luggage at the airport before handing it over and documenting the bag being weighed. 

This can help confirm the luggage’s original appearance and weight.

Passengers should also ensure the bag tag is securely attached and visible before the suitcase goes onto the conveyor belt. 

They should keep the baggage receipt until the trip is over and the luggage is safely returned.

Several victims told W5 that luggage trackers helped show where their real bags had gone. 

Travellers may also want to photograph the bag tag itself, making sure the tag number, destination and passenger name are clearly visible.

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