Woman tracks luggage in DC for 3 days after United promised delivery

By FOX 5 DC Digital Team | Published January 2, 2023 4:11PM | Washington, D.C. | FOX 5 DC |

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WASHINGTON (FOX 5 DC) - A D.C. woman has finally reunited with her luggage after tracking it to bizarre locations across the District – all while the airline assured her everything was fine.

Valerie Szybala did not have her luggage when she landed at DCA last Wednesday. On Thursday, United Airlines told her that her bag had arrived and asked if she wanted it delivered.

Szybala said yes and tracked her bag using an Apple AirTag. She started to worry when the bag appeared to sit overnight at an apartment complex off Rhode Island Avenue.

She says she really got worried when the bag began making trips to McDonald's and a local shopping center, all while United told her that her bag was safe and sound. ... That's when Szybala took her story to Twitter and started investigating.

"I've got souvenirs for my niece and nephew here and all my clothing," says Szybala. "Because of the AirTag tracking to this complex, I came down here repeatedly. At first, I just walked around to see if I could locate it. The next [time], I just stalked people. The third time, I called the police, I filed a police report [and] I found the bags out back. And another good Samaritan let me in yesterday."

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I’d just like everyone to know that
@united
has lost track of my bag and is lying about it. My apple AirTag shows that it has been sitting in a residential apartment complex for over a day. Out back by the dumpsters, I have found other emptied United Airlines bags.

Anyone wondering why I felt compelled to take this to social media, check out my most recent chat with one of their support reps through the
@united
app: