Third gun found in carry-on bag at Philadelphia International Airport this year
Jack Birle
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The Transportation Safety Agency announced Friday that it seized the third gun at Philadelphia International Airport this year. A record number of firearms were seized at the airport in 2022.
A man from Annapolis, Maryland, was arrested after officers found a .40-caliber handgun loaded with 12 bullets in his carry-on bag. Officers say they discovered the gun in the checkpoint x-ray machine.
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“The year is young and at this point I ask every owner of a firearm to make a new year’s resolution to pack their weapon properly for a flight if they want to travel with it,” TSA’s Federal Security Director for Philadelphia International Airport Gerardo Spero said in a statement.
“It is important to know that the proper way to transport a firearm for a flight is to ensure the weapon is not loaded, that it is packed in a locked hard-sided case and then taken to the airline check-in counter, where the airline representative will ensure it is transported in the belly of the plane with cargo and other checked baggage. Hopefully this incident serves as a reminder to other firearm owners about the proper way to transport their firearm because we have seen too many guns showing up at our security checkpoints already this year,” Spero continued.
Individuals who bring a gun in their carry-on bag through TSA screenings can be punished with a civil penalty as high as $15,000.
The latest gun seizure comes the same week the agency announced it set a record for the number of guns seized at Philadelphia International Airport. The agency says 44 firearms were caught by TSA at the airport in 2022, an increase from the previous record set in 2021. Roughly 75% of the guns seized at the airport were loaded.
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“The most common excuse we hear is that someone claims that they forgot that they had their loaded gun with them. If you own a firearm, you should know where it is at all times. It is part of being a responsible gun owner. Even if a traveler has a concealed weapons permit, firearms are not allowed to board an airplane with the gun in carry-on luggage. The idea is that nobody should have access to a gun during a flight,” Spero said.
For nationwide gun seizures at TSA security checkpoints, 6,301 firearms were confiscated in 2022, with 88% of those guns loaded. The 2022 figure was an all-time high for the 21-year-old TSA.