Has your case been tampered with?

A

Anastacio

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Feb 22, 2010
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The customs guy at Manchester airport asks me as he pulls me in to the search room on my way out of the baggage collection zone. No! Pack it yourself? yip! No one given you anything? nope!
OK, open your case up lets have a look, OK. OMG, my padlock has been cut off (didn't notice until I got to this point and had answered these questions.
Anyway, he pulled all my clothes out, and started swabbing my case with little white swabs, apparently to show any signs of any drugs that may have made contact. Got all the usual question, why do I live in the Republic, what do I do, have I been offered drugs etc etc.
So (mr customs man) is this legal, to go through my stuff (as someone along the Punta Cana, Munich, Manchester trail has) without me being there? no real reply, well it will be as you didn't fly direct! Eh?

ANyway, no real answers from him but as I got out of the airport it dawned on me that that could have been so different if someone wanted to stick something in my bag. I could have been in so much sh1t.
So, ok it must be legal, but are they not supposed to put a leaflet inside to say it has been tampered with and was fine at that point?
How can you answer honestly when you don't know where, but somewhere along the Punta Cana, Munich, Manchester line someone has been in.

Just a concern and got me thinking about all these arrests of young girls in Thailand and suchlike for transporting drugs.
 
K

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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If you use an approved lock, the officials are supposed to have a key that can open it. Of course, the bad guys could have a key, too, and use it to put something inside.

My bag was open one time, that I know about. There was either a paper inside or a sticker on the bag to say it had been opened.
 
cobraboy

cobraboy

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Jul 24, 2004
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Ken2 said:
If you use an approved lock, the officials are supposed to have a key that can open it. Of course, the bad guys could have a key, too, and use it to put something inside.

My bag was open one time, that I know about. There was either a paper inside or a sticker on the bag to say it had been opened.
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Locks don't work. It's easy to get into a zippered bag and close it without touching the locks. There are numerous videos about the "how's."

And bad guys have keys.

Besides, if someone put stuff in your bags after you drop them off at the ticket counter, their partner on the other end would remove it before you get your bag on the carousel.

Chances are the OP fit some recent profiling criteria.
 
A

Anastacio

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Feb 22, 2010
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I couldn't give a toss about them breaking the lock or looking inside, I just want some kind of sticker or letter telling customs at the other end all was good when they checked it and I havent seen it since.

I got pulled in at Munich for a search of my hand luggage and a good old questioning about why I was going through Germany to get to the UK, German customs are very serious guys, took me about 5 minutes to raise a smile out of the guy, great airport but on high alert so I hear when I got back. Who knows what they thought I'd done.
 
C

Chip

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Jul 25, 2007
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Santiago
I don't have a lock on any of my luggage, I guess I've been naive. Of course I never check luggage leaving the DR and when I return I'm always afraid someone is going to steal all my girl's presents, clothes and shoes or the odd electric device but alas they never do. :)
 
K

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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The best luggage security I have experienced is in Havana, Cuba. All departing passengers are required to have their luggage shrink wrapped before taking it to the check in counter. The machines are in the terminal and are the next stop after having your luggage x-rayed. Only then can you go to the counter for your boarding pass.
 
A

Anastacio

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Feb 22, 2010
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Ken2 said:
The best luggage security I have experienced is in Havana, Cuba. All departing passengers are required to have their luggage shrink wrapped before taking it to the check in counter. The machines are in the terminal and are the next stop after having your luggage x-rayed. Only then can you go to the counter for your boarding pass.
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If they can cut a padlock off I dont think they will hesitage in cutting shrinkwrap off, why does this make this issue more secure? From my understanding they are entirely entitles to go through your case where ever they want to.
 
J

jrhartley

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Sep 10, 2008
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you would think it would make it difficult to get a conviction for carrying drugs in a suitcase if its so easy to be tampered with
 
L

laurapasinifan

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Sep 19, 2005
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because TSA puts a pamphlet in your bag when they check it, doesnt mean Germany has to...or the DR, or the UK...

we have sooo many liberals "protecting" us here in america, we dont realize how real the rest of the world is/

in america, someone might actually think you have a RIGHT!!! to transport your explosives via the airlines!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and then someone will try to make it a law! ha ha

lots of other countries , dont fool around!!!

if the dominican airport workers opened it, you would be missing something..

they dont cut open locks for nothing!! ha ha

funny story , first time leavins the DR in POP, I had one of those big solid wood food smashers , it was about 24" tall!! and weighed about 20 lbs, in the middle of my bag..

they were opening bags and hand checking every bag back then.. the girl can barely lift it onto the tables 70 lb bag!! and she checks all around the outside touching this and that...then zips it closed!! she never found that heavy piece of wood!! ha ha ha.

i thought right then, we could easily get bloooowwwwwed up!! ha ha ha

bbbad bad bob
 
D

dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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my luggage is such a mess that i would never be able to guess if someone has opened it or not. never locked it, never wrapped it, it goes as is. i do not care about anything else but getting it back when i land. what happens with my bags in a meantime is not important. i am easy going: i take my shoes off, i empty my pockets and i let myslef be patted during the search. heck, i did not even fume when they strip searched me in tel aviv. what needs to be done needs to be done.
having said that i would be cross if someone opened my bags on poland-DR ruta and took all the kielbasa. i will defend my kielbasa to the last breath!
 
L

laurapasinifan

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Sep 19, 2005
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dv8 said:
my luggage is such a mess that i would never be able to guess if someone has opened it or not. never locked it, never wrapped it, it goes as is. i do not care about anything else but getting it back when i land. what happens with my bags in a meantime is not important. i am easy going: i take my shoes off, i empty my pockets and i let myslef be patted during the search. heck, i did not even fume when they strip searched me in tel aviv. what needs to be done needs to be done.
having said that i would be cross if someone opened my bags on poland-DR ruta and took all the kielbasa. i will defend my kielbasa to the last breath!
Click to expand...

I want it to be known that i am not reading too much into your statements....at all.... I promise, ..i think....

bbad bob
 
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D

dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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i do not understand. i am an easy going passenger. just don't touch my sausage, ok?
 
A

Alyonka

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Jun 3, 2006
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dv8 said:
i do not understand. i am an easy going passenger. just don't touch my sausage, ok?
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Don't worry, they will take away your kielbasa in any case. I gave up on asking my Mom to bring back to the US some salo long time ago. They have trained sniff dogs to search for it all of the bags that come from Ukraine. I am sure those can figure out sausage as well.
 
B

blackrainbow

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Dec 26, 2009
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ive also had my cases shrink wrapped in DR,

funny story, the guys were shrinkwrapping my parents brugal cool box, and i said "there are turtles in there!" (they never looked in the box before hand) and i laughed, and i think they got the joke, because they never did unwrap and check, thinking back i should of put a few bags of drugs in there also, hahaha. Jokes.

Maybe next time.

BR
 
D

dv8

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Sep 27, 2006
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you have it really bad in america...
i have travelled with my kielbasa from poland numerous times and it always got here no problem. it's not exactly a weapon of mass desctrucion :)
 
A

Alyonka

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Jun 3, 2006
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dv8 said:
you have it really bad in america...
i have travelled with my kielbasa from poland numerous times and it always got here no problem. it's not exactly a weapon of mass desctrucion :)
Click to expand...

Salo is a Ukrainian drug. ;)
 
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