If one self-upgraded and they were arrested for theft (of service), that still does not get a monetary award for aa. A separate civil suit would have to be pushed forward for aa to get their money.
Assuming the poacher were arrested, it is more than likely that aa would not push the criminal part in lieu of getting paid.
BUT, there are a lot of grey areas in the above scenario...
If the poacher was convicted or plead guilty, couldn't/wouldn't the court in sentencing order restitution to the airline?