A group of United Airlines employees are alleged to have been taking part in a lengthy plot to pilfer marijuana from checked baggage at San Francisco International Airport. According to an FBI criminal complaint, Joel Dunn and Adrian Webb are said to have recruited other unnamed “ramp cargo agents” at SFO to join in the illegal activity from 2020 to 2022, and the amount of marijuana supposedly taken is indicative of distribution to others instead of personal use.
The FBI claims that Dunn, the supposed mastermind of the scheme, first asked a co-worker to join in on the theft in 2020, offering $2,000 in cash per shift, and even more money if larger amounts were taken on that day, potentially up to $10,000 a week. The informant stated that Webb was Dunn’s right-hand man, giving orders when he was not present. Both Dunn and Webb’s attorneys did not respond to a request for comment from The Examiner by the time of publication.
The informant then went on to explain that the participants would allegedly snatch the marijuana from checked luggage and place the stolen goods into large black trash bags, which they then stored in their personal vehicles. In October of 2022, law enforcement at SFO intercepted two accomplices driving a cart carrying two boxes and a large black bag. Initially, the suspects denied the items were theirs, but later recanted their statement. Upon searching the cart, around 30 pounds of marijuana in vacuum sealed bags was found, and the two suspects were arrested. The FBI also reported surveillance footage showing Dunn, Webb, and the two accomplices taking similar bags out of the secure area of the airport to their personal vehicles.
Dunn and Webb are both facing federal charges of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance due to the FBI’s allegations. Both men have since been released from custody on bail, and their trial dates have not yet been set.