Airline worker, pal charged with stealing luggage after Asiana crash

Sean Sharif Crudup and Raychas Elizabeth Thomas.

A United Airlines customer service representative was charged Monday with stealing luggage from travelers whose flights were diverted after the Asiana Airlines crash.

"It was a crime of opportunity and the opportunity was there," Sgt. Wesley Matsuura, from the San Mateo Sheriff’s Department, told KTVU.com.

According to the report, Sean Crudup, 44, and his girlfriend, Raychas Thomas, 32, could be seen on surveillance footage allegedly taking bags with another unidentified woman.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the alleged victims' luggage contained clothing worth $30,000. The diverted passengers made the drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco after their plane was re-routed. When they arrived at the airport, their baggage was gone, the report said.

Thomas allegedly returned the clothes to a nearby Nordstrom store and received $5,000 for the items.

KTVU.com reported that a personal shopper at the store called one of the alleged victims, her client, about her sister returning all the clothes. The client reportedly responded: "I don’t have a sister."

The two were arrested on July 25 at San Francisco International boarding a flight to Hawaii, the report said.

In a search of Crudup's home, more stolen items from the victims' bags were found, prosecutors told the station.

Crudup and Thomas were released from custody on bail. Crudup has pleaded not guilty and Thomas is scheduled for arraignment on Aug. 26. The Los Angeles Times reports that they both could get a maximum sentence of four years in state prison for the offense.