Airline Employee Admits Cheating System In Boston Federal Court

BOSTON, MA – An airline employee pleaded guilty Friday in federal court in Boston in connection with using her position as an airline gate agent to cheating the system and getting friends, family and acquaintances cheap flights to expensive destinations.

Tiffany Jenkins, 31, pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud. She was arrested and charged in November 2018. The complaint lists Jenkins as being from Wellesley but the DA's office says was from Chelsea.

Prosecutors said Jenkins used her access to the airline company’s computer reservation database to use a special code, referred to as an involuntary exchange or “INVOL,” to change flights for customers for free. Agents are supposed to use the code to change flights for customers who miss their flights or experience a death in the family.

From approximately July 1, 2016, through Sept. 27, 2017, Jenkins exchanged 505 tickets for more than 100 different passengers, costing the New York-based airline around $785,000.

Many of those exchanges occurred after the passenger was first booked on domestic flights at one of the airline company’s lowest available fares —often, round-trip flights between Las Vegas, Nev., and Long Beach, Calif.

A short time later, Jenkins exchanged those tickets for a completely different city pair, generally involving much more expensive international locations, for friends, family and acquaintances.

In an interview with the airline company Jenkins admitted to knowing what she did was wrong, according to the complaint, which notes that after the interview, the airline fired her.

Jenkins was then interviewed by the FBI who she told she wanted her friends and family to travel the world and see tropical destinations.

She faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 for wire fraud. U.S. Senior District Court Judge Mark L. Wolf scheduled sentencing for Jan. 21.