Cruel airport thieves removed a padlock from a suitcase which had been checked in at Manchester Airport and stole jewellery which was supposed to be a family's surprise 21st birthday present while on holiday in Portugal.
The devastated Read family discovered the theft after they landed in Lisbon and realised someone had plundered their luggage. The thief or thieves had removed a metal padlock and snatched a Tiffany necklace and a Thomas Sabo bracelet which were presents for Ella Read, who celebrates her 21sth birthday while away on holiday on Saturday.
They also swiped at least 20 birthday cards containing an estimated £300 in birthday money. Now Manchester Airport, EasyJet and its baggage handling agent have launched an investigation into the crime, which the Read family believes must have happened at Manchester rather than Lisbon airport.
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Ella flew out of Terminal 1 at Manchester Airport on Sunday morning with her parents David, 53, a service engineer, and Catherine, who is also celebrating her birthday while on holiday. She is 51 on Monday and some of the stolen birthday cards were for her.
The family, from Hyde, checked in one large suitcase which was secured by a padlock with a four-digit code. It took about 45 minutes for them to go through security but the flight left on time and they landed in Lisbon just after 1pm local time. They say their bag came through quickly and they noticed the padlock was missing and items were missing.
"We're absolutely shocked that this can happen. You pay for a service, you pay for a suitcase and you even put a padlock on it and this happens. It's an absolute disgrace," said Catherine, who has another daughter, Hannah, 26.
"Ella always wanted to come to Lisbon. Now she's got no birthday cards or anything to open on her birthday."
Catherine believes the crime happened while the bag was at Manchester Airport as, she says, it was quickly removed from the plane by baggage handlers in Lisbon and soon on the luggage carousel in the arrivals hall. Other members of the family bought replacement birthday cards for Ella's 21st.
Catherine said: "It's not right. Why should they be able to go through people's personal belongings. We just don't want this to happen to anybody else. It's not a nice feeling knowing someone has gone through your personal belongings. We've never experienced anything like this before."
A spokesman for EasyJet said: "We are sorry to learn of the Read family’s experience. We take all allegations of this nature very seriously and are investigating this with our baggage handling partner at Manchester Airport.
"We work closely with all of our airport partners to ensure our passengers’ bags are handled securely. We are in touch with the family to apologise for their experience and offer any further assistance we can in the matter."
A spokesperson for Manchester Airport said: "It is disappointing to hear of the Read’s experience while travelling to Portugal, and are assured by easyJet they will be fully investigating the matter."
Airlines contract ground handling agents to handle travellers' baggage.
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