Most people might have heard the story about the guy at Coachella caught with a backpack full of stolen cell phones. If you’re a festival goer, this is like your worst nightmare. It doesn’t stop there, as there have been reports of personal items being stolen during the security check process, vendors taking advantage of attendees, security and staff employees working to confiscate as much as they can and also security working together to steal phones.
With such a large amount of positions to fill, Coachella organizers cannot be too picky when it comes to the hiring process. Often times, this means no prerequisites, no experience needed and no record checks. Events as big as Coachella usually have multiple companies staffing it, making it hard to tell who works for who.
One particular story from Coachella comes from an attendee who claims that a staff member stole his phone. He believes that when his cell phone was stolen, it was done by a staff member who then possibly passed it off to another staff member at an info or lost and found booth, covering up any mischief. The attendee used the Find my IPhone app, leading him to the first staff member who denied having his phone. That guy then called another staff member from a booth over to him. A few minutes later, after the second staff had left, the phone was at the booth he returned to.
We also have learned that many attendees went through security and got their stuff back with either less money or items missing. An event like this is too big to have control over everything, but it seems like these stories are far too common. Stay tuned for more updates.
