Former Avis employee accused of stealing 47 rental cars from Syracuse airport
A former Avis Budget Car Rental employee is suspected of cooperating in the theft of 47 rental cars from Syracuse Hancock Airport. The suspect, Milton Thompson III, allegedly stole the vehicles over the course of two months. Victoria Ciszewska | Daily Orange file photo
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Forty-seven rental cars valued at over $1 million were reported stolen from Syracuse Hancock International Airport between June and August 2025, the Syracuse Regional Airport Authority said in a release.
A former Avis Budget Car Rental employee allegedly stole the vehicles over the course of two months and rented them out across Onondaga County, according to the release. The suspect, Milton Thompson III, is wanted for grand larceny in the second degree and scheme to defraud in the first degree.
Second-degree grand larceny is a felony crime involving theft of over $50,000 worth of property. Scheme to defraud in the first degree is a felony crime of a “systematic” course of conduct, or a repetitive pattern of behavior, to defraud ten or more people under fraudulent pretenses, according to the New York State Senate website.
The New York Post reported on Saturday the cars were determined to be stolen after Avis Budget reported dozens of missing vehicles earlier this year. Forty-two of the 47 vehicles have been recovered after Thompson allegedly rented them out at locations across the county, police said in Friday’s release.
Authorities haven’t specified how the vehicles were stolen or how long Thompson possessed them, but several others have been arrested and charged with unlawful use of a motor vehicle, according to the release.
Police are still searching for Thompson and the five remaining vehicles.
