Originally Posted by
eielef
Well, that's not a good answer. It is certainly a realist answer, he moved on, he bought a better phone, and got his new documents already back home, but I can't accept that "crime does happen in the security zones of airports, in front of the police" and Istanbul police don't take it seriously. I would like them to move faster, or at least do something...
Is it clear it was a crime vs. a stupid mistake? One would like to think if it was a mistake the other person would return the bag, but he may not have immediately realized it (my mom once got all the way to my house with another person's bag off the carousel, who tracked her down from the tag on her actual bag).
While the area is secure, they're not watching who puts what on belt and who takes it off. One really has to do that oneself (personally I try to wait as long as possible to put wallet/phone/passport on belt until I'm sure I can get through the metal detector).