Frequent flyer miles thieves face up to 20 years of prison

Civil Aviation air_miles.jpg
Shutterstock / chrisdorney

Six men were charged for stealing airline frequent flyer miles and committing wire fraud. They face up to 20 years in federal prison.

On December 14, 2020, the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas announced that six men have been charged for committing wire fraud in August 2019. A federal grand jury charged a man from Zgierz, Poland, who is the lead defendant, together with five other men ranging, who are from California, Oklahoma, and Texas.

The lead defendant was arrested in Poland, handed over to the FBI and flown from Warsaw to Dallas in May 2020. The defendant is accused of hacking into travelers airline miles accounts, stealing the miles and later using them to book flights for other passengers, who had purchased the ticket through him and other five defendants. 

The US-based passengers who unknowingly participated in the scheme, would give their personal information along with the money order to the lead defendant, who would get them the tickets with the fraudulent miles. 

If convicted, they face up to 20 years in federal prison.