Department of Energy official Sam Brinton is accused of stealing luggage from Harry Reid International Airport, according to a 8NewsNow report. Brinton was previously accused of a similar crime at the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport after allegedly stealing the suitcase of a passenger who flew into the Minnesota airport on a Delta flight from New Orleans.
Surveillance video led police to suspect Brinton who flew into MSP without checked luggage but left the airport with luggage, according to an Alpha News report. Law enforcement reviewed airport footage after a female passenger from a New Orleans flight alerted airport staff her luggage was missing.
Brinton, the Department of Energy’s deputy assistant secretary of the Office of Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition, was observed removing a navy blue roller bag from carousel seven, according to a criminal complaint. The footage was shown to the woman who reported her missing luggage and she confirmed the navy blue roller bag Brinton removed belonged to her.
After a two-day stay at a local hotel, the Energy Department official returned to the airport for a flight back to Washington, D.C., according to the report.
The report noted that footage from Dulles International Airport, near D.C., revealed Brinton returning from Europe three weeks later with the same blue bag.
Before the Las Vegas accusations against Brinton surfaced, House Republicans corresponded with Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, demanding Brinton’s resignation.
“Surveillance footage reveals Brinton taking and leaving with luggage from the baggage carousel at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport on September 16th,” Republicans wrote. “After initially lying to the police, Brinton later admitted to taking a suitcase valued at $2,325 and hiding the owner’s belongings in a hotel room.”
The lawmakers informed Granholm that Brinton used the stolen suitcase on a number of trips to Washington, D.C. They further noted Brinton was ultimately charged with felony theft, which carries a maximum “five years imprisonment, a $10,000 fine, or both.”
“As an appointed official, Sam Brinton represents both your Department and the United States,” the letter writers added. “It is simply not possible for an individual to represent American values and simultaneously violate the felony laws of the land.”
SiriusXM podcaster Megyn Kelly expressed her outrage Friday in a Twitter post.
“This story is amazing,” Kelly declared. “Perhaps some more time should be spent on actually vetting our nuclear officials (or firing them when necessary) instead of just hiring anyone who checks a diversity box.”
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