One thing is certain: we will be more terrified every time a bag has to follow its path on the check-in conveyor belt.
Dante’s episode of the suitcases full of cocaine that unjustly sent a couple of tourists from Goiânia to prison for more than a month in Germany has already gone down in history as one of the biggest aeronautical and tourism scandals in Brazil.
It is no longer enough to hope that the suitcase arrives safely at its destination, without a broken zipper and with everything inside, now it is to be hoped that it has not been intercepted by some drug trafficking cartel.
What is even more shocking about this episode that happened to Kátyna and Jeanne is that it could have happened to anyone. They were not naïve for accepting to take orders from strangers, they were victims of a gang that operates daily behind the scenes in Guarulhos. And one of the biggest absurdities of the episode is to see from the security cameras that it was not at all complicated for an employee to bypass the X-ray and take the suitcases with drugs directly to the hold of the plane.
Fortunately, the cameras showed everything from the couple’s exit from the building in Goiânia to the sneaky exchange of tags in São Paulo, done from an angle that the cameras couldn’t record. Without the visual evidence, it would have been a different story.
If in recent times we have been taught not to walk down the street with a banking application installed on a mobile phone, now no one should have to check a suitcase without photographing it from all angles, both inside and out, and sending the images to acquaintances and to the cloud. Checking the weight of your baggage on the scale very carefully, taking a photograph of the tag and comparing any discrepancies at the destination airport should also become a habit. The use of electronic baggage identification tags such as the AirTag should go this route. There is a market that is thirsty to offer products to a cornered audience.
The crisis of reliability that this episode can cause in international travel is no small matter, especially when Brazil is on a promising path of tourism recovery.
The trauma experienced by Kátyna and Jeanne is perhaps irreparable. Traveling overseas again, should they ever find the strength, must be hell because their names must be on some Interpol list. Having to relive the episode in every line of immigration around the world is like re-victimizing them.
We will all be more vigilant, fearful and perhaps someone will establish a habit that should be more common at this point: traveling with hand luggage only.
Source: Terra
Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.
