Is Sam Brinton Arrested? What Did Sam Brinton Do? Who Is Sam Brinton?

What Did Sam Brinton Do?

Sam Brinton, a senior Energy Department (DOE) official, has been accused of stealing another traveler's luggage at the Minneapolis airport in September, just before secretly taking a leave of absence.

Brinton, the DOE's deputy assistant secretary for spent fuel and waste disposition, has been accused of stealing a Vera Bradley suitcase valued at $2,325 from the luggage carousel at Minneapolis St. Paul Airport (MSP) on September 16, according to a criminal complaint filed on October 26 in Minnesota state court and obtained by Fox News Digital. Brinton had driven to MSP from Washington, D.C., that day.

Is Sam Brinton Arrested?

Brinton is accused of stealing someone else's luggage and faces up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. According to court documents, officers reviewed luggage carousel footage after the suitcase owner called the police. They saw Brinton take the suitcase before removing the owner's identification tag. Brinton was seen using the luggage on at least two more trips to Washington, D.C., on September 18 and October 9.

Brinton was seen removing a blue bag from the baggage claim at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Brinton denied the allegation of stealing anything when a police officer called him to discuss the incident. Brinton admitted to still posessing the bag. Sam informed the officer that if he had known that he had taken the wrong bag, he would gladly return it, but he didn't have any clothes for someone else. He revealed that those were his clothes when he opened the bag.

Sam Brinton Theft

Brinton apologized to the police for not being "completely honest" in a two-hour follow-up call to the officer. On the other hand, Brinton admitted that it was a mistake and that he had chosen the wrong bag at the carousel because he was tired.

According to the court documents, the defendant claimed they discovered the bag wasn't theirs when they opened it at the hotel. DEFENDANT claimed they left the clothing bag in the hotel room drawers.

Brinton was eventually charged with felony theft of movable property without consent, which carries a five-year prison sentence, a $10,000 fine, or both.

Who Is Sam Brinton?

Sam Brinton is the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office of Spent Fuel and Waste Disposal. They are said to be in charge of NE-8 and its programs, including the Office of Spent Fuel and Waste Science and Technology and the Office of Integrated Waste Management.

According to the Office of Nuclear Energy, "Sam brings a wealth of experience to this role, having previously served as the first employee of the country's first and only nuclear waste management and disposal start-up company, as well as leading one of the first major national consensus reports on the topic of consent-based siting at the Bipartisan Policy Center. Sam has also worked for think tanks such as the Breakthrough Institute, Clean Air Task Force, and Third Way."

It adds, "Sam holds dual graduate degrees in nuclear science and engineering as well as the Technology Policy Program from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and undergraduate degrees in mechanical engineering with a nuclear engineering focus and vocal music performance from Kansas State University. Sam is also a well-known advocate for LGBTQ youth and helped to secure protections against the dangerous and discredited practice of conversion therapy in more than half of the country. They identify as gender-fluid and use the pronouns they, them, and theirs."