Baggage Handler at Portland International Airport Caught Red Handed Stealing a Passenger’s Checked Firearm, Suspected in Multiple Similar Thefts

A baggage handler at Portland International Airpot (PDX) is the main suspect in the theft of multiple firearms that were stolen from passengers checked luggage. Despite being granted access to highly secure parts of the airport, the suspect has an extensive crimial history and has been convicted of a slew of felony crimes, including distribution of narcotics.

The Port of Portland Police began their investigation in early June when they started to receive calls from passengers who had travelled through PDX, reporting that their firearms, which had been checked into their hold luggage, did not arrive at their intended destination.

Local enforcement called in the FBI and a joint investigation got underway. After reviewing suveillance camera footage from across the airport they identifed a potential suspect who had knowledge of the way checked bags moved through the airport.

They quickly identified their person of interest as 51-year-old Terell Wayne Overton who was working as a baggage handler through a third-party contractor.

At this point, investigators didn’t have enough evidence to arrest Overton but that changed on June 28, when another victim contacted the Port of Portland Police to report that their Glock 19 handgun had been taken from their checked bag after flying from Portland International to Oakland, California.

The report was made just after the passenger arrived at their destination and, along with the presence of an Apple AirTag in the locked case that contained the firearm, this gave investigators an immediate lead to apprehend Overton red handed.

The AirTag was initially ‘pinging’ its location in the Alaska Airlines baggage handling area at PDX, but at around 2:30 pm, the location was updated to the employee shutte bus pickup area. At this same time, police had eyes on Overton; his location? The employee shuttle bus pickup area.

Overton boarded the shuttle bus to the employee parking lot, and as the bus drove away, the AirTag updated to the street that the bus uses to get to the employee parking lot.

By 2:45 pm, the victim told police that the AirTag was now ‘pinging’ from within the employee parking lot. Law enforcement went to apprehend Overton in the parking lot, and as they approached, they witnessed him discard a black Puma backpack behind a parked car.

A few minutes later, the AirTag ‘pinged’ that it was in the exact spot that Overton was taken into custody. After securing a search warrant of the backpack, officers found the locked gun case inside the bag. The lock was cut and the firearm and Apple AirTag were inside.

Having been read his Miranda Rights, Overton told investigators that his girlfriend had lost her job and that he had a kid. Officers asked Overton if the thefts were due to financial problems, but at this point, he invoked his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent.

Overton has been charged with one count of Felon in Possession of a Firearm under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years imprisonment, and one count of Theft of a Firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(l), which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment.

Overton has since been released from custody pending further court hearings.