Originally Posted by
thesaints
Very likely your baggage poachers are based in Jo'burg...
Now, now: there's plenty of well-documented baggage theft that goes on in U.S. airports. If DL was the last carrier of the passenger to the ticketed destination, DL is on the hook for whatever occurred along the way. It's also been noted that airlines take eight-twelve weeks to pay out (properly documented and filed) claims.
Just wait until the OP sees DL's take on depreciated value, rather than purchase cost, and omitting entirely the items that weren't supposed to be in checked luggage in the first place. He's going to have another screaming fit.