The author of the article questioned the ability of the TSA agent to "leave" the "sterile" area with stolen equipment. People are screened going into the SIDA (secure identification display area)...not coming out. Therefore, the question is meaningless. Should we search each passenger coming off a flight to ensure he's not carrying someone else's bag or personal effects? Of course not. Accordingly, there's no reason to expect that one has to obtain a clearance of be searched to exit, as a worker or passenger or employee.
The author compares passengers being screened in order to enter a secure area, with a TSA employee who is not screened when exiting the secure area. Apples and oranges, or in other words, nonsensical. If the author was to draw a true and correct parallel, the author would have to require the TSA agent to be screened while entering the secure area...which he is. Further, this wouldn't reveal a theft of the camera...because he took it while in the secure area, and exited...just like everyone else. In fact, by the author's own call to attention, the matter was handled properly, and there should be no expectation that the TSA employee would be caught.
If we were to find compliance with the author's wishes, then all passengers would have to screen both in, and out, of secure areas...which isn't the case any more than it's the case for the TSA employee.
Again, when one is talking about screening for weapons, explosives, prohibited items, etc, one is talking about preventing them from entering the secure area. This is a security issue. We don't see passengers beeing screened for stolen items before they enter the secure area. NCIC checks and other stolen goods or wants checks aren't run on passenger's posessions. Certainly this isn't done as the passenger leaves the secure area. Yet the author calls for criminal checks and property checks on the TSA employee, and tries to justify it by saying that the passengers are subject to such screening...simply not true.
Security screening is safety screening, not part of a criminal investigation. Searching a TSA agent for stolen goods is a criminal investigation and law enforcement function...which has nothing to do with security screening for admittance into the passenger terminal gate area.