Thread: TSA Weeks in Review Spanning 09-27-13 to 10-17-13

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2013

TSA Weeks in Review Spanning 09-27-13 to 10-17-13

Loaded Firearm (SEA)

99 Firearms Discovered in the last three weeks – Of the 99 firearms, 84 were loaded and 29 had rounds chambered. See a complete list and more photos at the bottom of this post.

Credit Card Knife (ABQ)

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 of where prohibited items were found by our officers in strange places over the past three weeks.

• Four credit-card knives were discovered. Two were discovered at Mobile (MOB), and the others at Albuquerque (ABQ), and Joplin (JLN).
• A three-inch knife was detected concealed in a wallet at Albuquerque (ABQ).
• A cane sword was discovered at LaGuardia (LGA).
• A pocketknife was found concealed in a cane at Denver (DEN).
• A knife was discovered taped to the inside lining of the bag at Minneapolis (MSP).
• A dagger hidden inside a comb was discovered at Denver (DEN).
• A stun gun disguised to look like lipstick was discovered at St. Louis (STL).

(Left to Right, Top to Bottom)Hatchet & Dagger (BUR), Large Knife (BOS), Sword Cane (LGA), Throwing Star (BUR), Throwing Stars & Knife (LAX), Folding Knuckle Knife (OTZ)

Comb Knife (DEN)

Stun Guns – 43 stun guns were discovered in carry-on bags around the nation in the last three weeks. Four were found in Atlanta (ATL), four in Baltimore (BWI), four in Denver (DEN), four in San Francisco (SFO), three in Norfolk (ORF), three in Phoenix (PHX), two in Reno (RNO), and two in Tulsa (TUL). One stun gun was found at each of the following airports: Anchorage (ANC), Buffalo (BUF), Burbank (BUR), Columbia (CAE), Akron Canton (CAK), Cleveland (CLE), Grand Island (GRI), Honolulu (HNL), Houston Intercontinental (IAH), Las Vegas (LAS), Kansas City (MCI), Minneapolis (MSP), San Diego (SAN), Seattle (SEA), Sacramento (SMF), Santa Maria (SMX), and St. Louis (STL).

Stun Guns Discovered at (Left to Right) STL, SAN, RNO, MCI, CAE, BWI

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.

• An inert training device was discovered in checked baggage at Fort Lauderdale (FLL). The device caused the terminal to be closed for 33 minutes while experts worked to clear the device.
• An inert grenade was discovered in a carry-on bag at Nashville (BNA).

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…

Firecrackers (JFK)

Airsoft Guns – Airsoft guns were discovered in carry-on bags at Seattle (SEA), and San Francisco (SFO). Airsoft guns are prohibited in carry-on bags, but allowed in checked baggage. Read this post for more information: TSA Travel Tips Tuesday: Traveling With Airsoft Guns

Firearms Discovered in the in Carry-On Bags Spanning 09-27-13 to 10-17-13

Guns Discovered at (Left to Right, Top to Bottom) MLU, JAX, PHX, SEA, SEA, TYS

Guns Discovered at (Left to Right, Top to Bottom) BDL, BWI, STL, RAP, JAX, MGM

Guns Discovered at (Top to Bottom) SMF, SAT, JAN

Guns Discovered at Denver (DEN)

*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.

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.

Posted by Bob Burns (TSA Blog Team) at 10/18/2013 09:41:00 PM

http://blog.tsa.gov/2013/10/tsa-week...-09-27-13.html

POSTED OCTOBER 19, 2013

Reports: Bill Russell arrested after loaded gun was found in carry-on bag at airport

BY BEN GOLLIVER

Bill Russell won 11 championships with the Celtics. (Paul Marotta/Getty Images)

Legendary NBA center Bill Russell was arrested Wednesday at the Seattle-Tacoma (Sea-Tac) Airport when a loaded handgun was allegedly found in his luggage, according to multiple reports.

KING-5 News and KIRO-TV in Seattle both report that Russell, 79, was arrested after a loaded .38-caliber handgun was found during a Transportation Security Administration screening of his carry-on bag.
Russell reportedly had a permit for the weapon, which was confiscated. KIRO-TV reported that Russell, who has since been released, was cited by the Port of Seattle for carrying a weapon in a prohibited area and that the TSA will assess a monetary penalty.
KOMO News reports additional details.

The 11-time NBA champion was arrested just after 9 p.m. when Transportation Security Administration workers found a loaded .38 caliber Smith & Wesson firearm in his carry-on bag, according to Lorie Dankers with the TSA. The Port of Seattle Police arrested and cited the 79-year-old on a state charge. He was released that night, but his gun was confiscated, according to airport spokesman Perry Cooper.

In addition to winning 11 titles with the Celtics in the 1950s and 1960s, Russell was a five-time MVP and 12-time All-Star during his Hall of Fame career. After retiring in 1969, Russell went on to coach the Celtics, SuperSonics and Kings. The NBA has named its Finals MVP trophy in his honor, and Russell was on hand in Miami in June to present the award to Heat forward LeBron James.
Russell has been honored in countless ways in recent years. The Celtics announced in 2011 that Russell, who lives in Washington state, will be honored with a commemorative statue in Boston’s City Hall Plaza that will be unveiled in November. In May of this year, Phil Jackson paid Russell the ultimate basketball compliment, saying that he would select the Celtics center over Michael Jordan if he was starting a team from scratch.
In recognition of his achievements both on and off the court, President Barack Obama awarded Russell the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011.
“Bill Russell is the former Boston Celtics’ Captain who almost single-handedly redefined the game of basketball,” a White House statement read. “Russell led the Celtics to a virtually unparalleled string of eleven championships in thirteen years and was named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player five times. The first African American to coach in the NBA—indeed he was the first to coach a major sport at the professional level in the United States—Bill Russell is also an impassioned advocate of human rights. He marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and has been a consistent advocate of equality.”

http://nba.si.com/2013/10/18/bill-ru...s-gun-airport/