Customs officer stole cash from travelers at airport: feds

Feds say a former U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer pleaded guilty to robbing travelers at the Naples airport in Florida.

Getty Images/iStockphoto

Court documents say a man arriving from the Bahamas noticed he was missing $2,200 after handing a wad of cash to a U.S. customs officer at an airport in Naples, Florida, during a routine border inspection.

According to federal prosecutors, he was one of several international airline passengers whose money was stolen by William Joseph Timothy, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection official working at the airport.

Prosecutors allege Timothy stole approximately $18,700 in cash from international travelers while conducting border checks and currency verification between 2023 and early this year.

Click to change size

Prosecutors say this happened 17 separate times, based on evidence collected by CBP Office of Professional Responsibility investigators.

Timothy, 43, of Ave Maria, pleaded guilty on June 18 to robbing passengers “in the course of his official duties,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of Florida announced in a news release.

His criminal defense attorney did not immediately respond to a June 20 request for comment from McClatchy News.

Theft was reported

A traveler who arrived at Naples International Airport on a private plane from the Bahamas reported to the pilot and an airport employee that $2,200 was stolen from him in May 2023, according to an affidavit prepared by a CBP special agent in Miami.

Airport surveillance footage from that day shows Timothy counting a stack of cash that the man handed him during border control and currency verification, the statement reads.

The video shows Timothy putting aside three stacks of bills and, according to the affidavit, placing several customs declaration forms on top of the money in an apparent attempt to hide the cash.

According to the affidavit, Timothy never returned the money (22 notes) to the passenger and was seen pocketing it after the man left.

“He failed to submit any report or documentation that would support the seizure of cash” from the man, the CBP officer wrote in a statement.

Passengers want their money back

Court records show Timothy was charged with converting property (over $1,000) to a U.S. officer or employee, which is a federal crime.

By agreeing to plead guilty, Timothy promised to pay full restitution to those he stole from, prosecutors say.

He also agreed to “immediately resign” from CBP, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.

Prosecutors say Timothy faces up to 10 years in federal prison. No date has been set for his sentencing hearing yet.

Julia Marnin is a McClatchy National Real-Time reporter covering the Southeast and Northeast based in New York. She is a graduate of The College of New Jersey and joined McClatchy in 2021. She has previously written for Newsweek, Modern Luxury, Gannett and more.