Woman accused of stealing luggage at Salt Lake airport handed 13 months in prison

SALT LAKE CITY — The final defendant charged in a series of baggage thefts at the Salt Lake City International Airport in 2022 was sentenced Monday to more than a year in prison.

Leticia Marie Torres, 45, of Salt Lake City, pleaded guilty in November to aiding and abetting in the theft of baggage from interstate shipment and illegal transactions with an access device. Two more counts of aiding and abetting in the theft of baggage and a charge of aggravated identity theft were dismissed as part of her plea agreement.

She was sentenced Monday to 13 months in prison plus two years of probation and ordered to pay $36,599.54 in restitution. According to federal prosecutors, Torres has a past "pattern of frequent, often annual, arrests," a majority of which were for controlled substances violations.

Torres was charged in November 2023 in federal court along with codefendant Brianna Marie Taylor, of Midvale. Taylor was charged with the same crimes as Torres, plus one count of theft of baggage from an interstate shipment.

Taylor pleaded guilty to all charges except for the identity theft count and was sentenced last year to 13 months in prison plus three years of probation. Prosecutors said Taylor has a lengthy criminal history with theft and fraud convictions in both Utah and California.

Court documents state that the two women stole multiple pieces of baggage on various days from multiple victims in January 2022.

"As part of their scheme to defraud, Torres and Taylor used multiple stolen credit cards belonging to one of the victims and received payment and other items of value during a one-year period, costing the victims $36,599.54 in losses," the U.S. Attorney's Office of Utah said.

Torres was not present at the airport for some of the thefts, but the stolen luggage was brought to her home, court documents said.

"In each incident, we took the baggage without permission or authorization from the respective owners," Torres said in her plea statement. "We understood the bags contained items of value that would be converted or used by this individual or myself. In fact, some of the bags and/or their contents were located in my residence that I shared with other individuals."

A third defendant, Charles Masters, of West Valley City, was charged in a separate indictment related to another string of baggage thefts in the same time period. He was charged with five counts of theft of baggage from interstate shipment for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars worth of baggage.

"I was involved in removing baggage that did not belong to me or anyone I know ... my intent was to take the baggage and provide them to another individual because I owed that individual a drug debt. I understood the bags contained items of value that would be converted or used by this individual to reduce my debt," he said in his plea statement.

He pleaded guilty to all five counts and was sentenced in 2024 to two months of home detention and three years of probation.

Salt Lake police and the airport urge travelers to never leave bags unattended to prevent theft. Other tips include placing high-value items in carry-on baggage and reconsidering luxury-branded luggage, as it may attract potential thieves.

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