Thread: TSA Week in Review – 39 Firearms Discovered This Week (32 Loaded)

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2013

TSA Week in Review – 39 Firearms Discovered This Week (32 Loaded)

Loaded Pistol Discovered in Carry-on Bag (TYS)

39 Firearms Discovered This Week – Of the 39 firearms, 32 were loaded and seven had rounds chambered. See a complete list and more photos at the bottom of this post.

(Top to Bottom) Knife Taped to Disposable Razor (MSP), Razorblade Concealed Between Two Healthcare Cards (PHL), Belt Buckle Knife (DEN)

Artfully Concealed Prohibited Items – It’s important to examine your bags prior to traveling to ensure no prohibited items are inside. If a prohibited item is discovered in your bag or on your body, you could be cited and quite possibly arrested by local law enforcement. Here are a few examples from this week where prohibited items were found by our officers in strange places.

• A belt buckle knife was discovered at Denver (DEN).
• A multi-tool was found concealed in a shirt, wrapped in a towel, and placed in a book at Mobile (MOB).
• A razorblade was detected in the wallet between two medical insurance cards that were taped together at Philadelphia (PHL).
• A Swiss Army knife was found attached to a disposable razor in an attempt to sneak it through the checkpoint at Minneapolis St. Paul (MSP).

Stun Guns – Nine stun guns were discovered this week in carry-on bags around the nation. Three were discovered at San Francisco (SFO), and the others were detected at Denver (DEN), Tupelo (TUP), Las Vegas (LAS), Minneapolis (MSP), Nashville (BNA), and Phoenix (PHX).

Miscellaneous Prohibited Items - In addition to all of the other prohibited items we find weekly, our officers also regularly find firearm components, realistic replica firearms, bb and pellet guns, Airsoft guns, brass knuckles, ammunition, batons, and a lot of sharp pointy things…

(Top to Bottom, Left to Right) Kukri Knife (IAH), Spring-loaded Knife (SLC), Throwing Star (ALB)

All of these knives were discovered in a carry-on bag at JFK

Knives discovered this week in carry-on bags at ROC

Inert Ordnance and Grenades etc. - We continue to find inert hand grenades and other weaponry on a weekly basis. Please keep in mind that if an item looks like a realistic bomb, grenade, mine, etc., it is prohibited - real or not. When these items are found at a checkpoint or in checked baggage, they can cause significant delays in checkpoint screening. While they may be novelty items, you cannot bring them on a plane. Read here on why inert items cause problems.

• Two novelty grenades were discovered this week in two separate incidents at Phoenix (PHX).

Ammunition – When packed properly, ammunition can be transported in your checked luggage, but it is never permissible to pack ammo in your carry-on bag.

• Twenty-two rounds of 20-gauge shotgun shells were discovered in a carry-on bag at Sacramento (SMF).

Shotgun Shells in Carry-on Bag (SMF)

Firearms Discovered This Week in Carry-On Bags

Guns Discovered at (Left to Right, Top to Bottom) JAX, PGD, MCO, IAH, PIT, MCO

Guns Discovered at (Top to Bottom, Left to Right) HOU, MCO, JAX, MTJ, CLT

Guns Discovered at (Left to Right, Top to Bottom) MAF, PDX, ATL, FLL, FAI, GCC, MCO, ANC

*In order to provide a timely weekly update, I compile my data from a preliminary report. The year-end numbers will vary slightly (increase) from what I report in the weekly updates. However, any monthly, midyear, or end-of-year numbers TSA provides on this blog or elsewhere will not be estimates.

You can travel with your firearms in checked baggage, but they must first be declared to the airline. You can go here for more details on how to properly travel with your firearms. Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality. Travelers should familiarize themselves with state and local firearm laws for each point of travel prior to departure.

Unfortunately these sorts of occurrences are all too frequent which is why we talk about these finds. Sure, it’s great to share the things that our officers are finding, but at the same time, each time we find a dangerous item, the throughput is slowed down and a passenger that likely had no ill intent ends up with a citation or in some cases is even arrested. The passenger can face a penalty as high as $7,500.00. This is a friendly reminder to please leave these items at home. Just because we find a prohibited item on an individual does not mean they had bad intentions, that's for the law enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items.

If you haven’t seen it yet, make sure you check out our post highlighting the dangerous, scary, and downright unusual items our officers found in 2012. The 2011 list can be found here.

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Bob Burns
TSA Blog Team

If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact us by clicking here.

http://blog.tsa.gov/2013/10/tsa-week...-firearms.html

Police: Man Had Loaded Rifle in Bag at JFK

NEW YORK October 26, 2013 (AP)


Police say a Tennessee man has checked luggage containing a loaded, defaced rifle at New York's Kennedy International Airport.

Keenan Draughon (DRAW'-guhn) was arrested Saturday morning trying to board a flight to Charlotte, N.C., after Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police found the weapons. Police spokesman Joseph Pentangelo says Draughon also had high-capacity magazines, which are illegal in New York.

U.S. Transportation Security Administration rules allow only unloaded weapons in checked luggage.

Pentangelo says the serial numbers on two rifles were defaced. He says Draughon was also carrying two handguns in his checked luggage.

The 23-year-old Clarksville man was being held on six counts of criminal possession of a weapon pending an arraignment. It wasn't clear whether he has a lawyer.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/p...g-jfk-20691602