I’m pretty sure most people who work for an airline company enjoy the perk of free flights. Typically, employment perks are limited to current employees and certainly not a lifetime benefit to an employee who held their position for a mere four months.
The employee in this true-crime case wanted the benefit to continue. He used and sold airline employee information such as names, dates of hire, and employee identification numbers to enable unauthorized access to the airline’s web portal and schedule free flights.
The FBI, FAA, and Federal Air Marshal Service investigated the crimes. Then the US Department of Justice indicted the ex-employee and five co-conspirators. The investigation connected almost 2,000 flights to the scheme for an estimated loss of revenue for the airline of $150,000.
The ex-employee pleaded guilty to manufacturing counterfeit airline employee identification badges. A federal judge sentenced him to 30 months in prison and ordered him to pay $150,000 in restitution to the airline company.
The five others have pleaded not guilty and go to trial soon.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice