RCMP in Richmond, B.C. say the force has received 139 reports of stolen luggage at Vancouver International Airport over the past year, a troubling figure to air passenger rights experts.

Gabor Lukacs, an air passenger rights advocate, said he thinks better security at the airport could bring the number down.

"Even one theft from the carousel is too much," said Lukas, the founder of airpassengerrights.ca.

"It's entirely unacceptable and it strikes me as being preventable to great extent with proper security measures."

Police say the thefts happened between June 2018 and July 2019, and may have taken place at either the domestic or international terminals at YVR. They also say the thefts could have occurred outside the Vancouver airport, namely at airports where incoming passengers departed from.

Singer's luggage lifted

"Our statistics do not allow that type of detail. It is also important to note, that these luggage theft numbers are not strictly confined to luggage carousels but any type of luggage theft," said Cpl. Dennis Hwang with Richmond RCMP in an email.

Last week, musician Jocelyn Pettit had her suitcase stolen right off the baggage carousel at Vancouver Airport's domestic terminal.

"There was no security there," Petit told CBC News at the time. "No guards to prevent people from walking right up to the carousel."

Jocelyn Pettit, a professional musician and dancer, was flying back to B.C. from Scotland for work-related performances this summer. She said her luggage was stolen straight off the carousel at YVR's domestic terminal. (Ben Nelms/CBC)

In a statement, Vancouver Airport says nearly 100,000 bags pass securely through the system every day. It takes every incident seriously and continues to work with RCMP to increase vigilance.

Like many Canadian airports, the public can access the domestic baggage claim area.

Lukacs says airports were designed this way to allow family and friends to meet their loved ones and grab their suitcases together, but he says this may no longer be feasible.

Installed gates

"The most obvious way to change things is to limit access to the domestic baggage area to those people who actually travel, which is common solution in many cities," said Lukacs.

In the fall of 2017, Vancouver Airport installed some swinging gates to serve as barriers but the area can still easily be accessed by non-travellers.

Around the same time, a 46-year-old man was arrested for stealing luggage from baggage carousels in the domestic arrival terminal.

Lukacs encourages police to take this issue more seriously, as he says it could damage the airport's reputation.

Airlines are responsible for any lost or damage to luggage, even if someone steals them from the carousel.