GASTONIA, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Gastonia Police arrested a second person who, they believe, was involved in a stolen luggage operation from Charlotte Douglas International Airport over the holidays. The other family hit is from Concord.

Queen City News first reported on the situation on Dec. 26, just 24 hours after Catherine Gavino used the AirTag to track down the stolen luggage to a house on McGuire Street.

‘I wanted justice.’ AirTags used to track stolen luggage from Charlotte airport to suspect’s home

She alerted local authorities to her discovery and within what seemed like an eternity for her family, the police brought out their luggage and the luggage of another family.

Queen City News has learned the second group of victims is the Vargas family from Concord.

Their story is very similar to what the Gavinos went through on Dec. 22, the same day the Vargas family had theirs stolen.

Dr. Ricardo Vargas told Queen City News that they had two sets of luggage taken from baggage claim.

“When we landed, we saw two of our four bags sitting in baggage claim. It looks like they landed earlier than we did,” the physician explained.

That was enough time for the two suspected individuals to allegedly take their two bags and a bag that belonged to the Gavino family.

However, like the Gavino family, the Vargas had an AirTag inside one of their stolen bags.

Vargas detailed how the device wasn’t actually supposed to be in the luggage.

“We bought it and put it in there for another trip … completely forgot it was in there,” he explained.

Charlotte Airport express decks reopen after nearby wreck, downed power lines

When he and his family tracked the AirTag it showed up traveling on Interstate 85 toward Gastonia shortly before the signal was lost.

They, like the Gavino family, believed that it was a malfunction at first.

“We just thought, OK, maybe we’ll find it later,” Vargas told reporters.

On Christmas Day, the AirTag’s signal reappeared at an address in Gastonia.

Vargas contacted Gaston County authorities, who told him the people at the address appeared to have not been connected to his case.

However, a few hours later, authorities called to inform him his luggage had been found at an adjacent house along with that of another family, the Gavinos, visiting from south Florida.

“I was upset because we got one suitcase back, but … we had Christmas gifts we were not able to give out,” he explained. “We bought souvenirs. We also had very expensive medical equipment.”

Both Vargas and the Gavino family expressed frustration with the ease at which two individuals appeared to have taken their luggage.

“We’ve landed at other airports and baggage claim is not open to the public,” Vargas said. “Here at Charlotte Douglas anybody can walk from the street and take the bag.”

Queen City News reached out to Charlotte Douglas for a comment or if any changes would be added to the baggage claim area.

Representatives issued a statement and said, “The Airport takes the safety and security of our customers, employees and property on Airport premises very seriously.  We continue to work closely with the airlines and law enforcement partners to assess and implement appropriate measures.”

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News.