WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – An airline employee at Palm Beach International Airport has been arrested after he was found with $282,000 in a backpack that he was instructed to deliver to a passenger in an airport restroom, according to a federal affidavit.
Jean Yves Selius, 26, of Boynton Beach, was taken into custody Saturday. He faces a charge of illegal money transmitting.
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According to the affidavit, the Delta Air Lines ramp agent was stopped by a U.S. Department of Homeland Security agent after he bypassed security checkpoints and used his employee badge to enter a secure area of the airport.
A search of Selius' backpack revealed "large packets of cash wrapped in clear, vacuum-sealed bundles," Special Agent Jon A. Longo wrote in the affidavit.
Selius, who was dressed in plain clothes, told investigators that he was being paid $900 to $1,000 to give the backpack to an unidentified traveler in a bathroom at the airport, the affidavit said. Selius said the man was a passenger on a flight leaving PBIA for New York's LaGuardia Airport later that morning.
Authorities determined that the backpack he was carrying contained $282,400 in cash. Selius said he knew that the backpack contained a large amount of money and did not "come from a good cause," the affidavit said.
Selius said two men approached him about a year ago to make other drop-offs at the airport after learning that he worked there, the affidavit said. Selius said he had been paid $3,900 total for smuggling money on four previous occasions.
Delta spokesman Brian Kruse said Selius was fired Tuesday. He said Delta "will continue to fully cooperate" with authorities regarding the incident.