NEWARK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – Officers arrested a Pennsylvania man who was carrying a loaded handgun in his traveler’s backpack on Thursday at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
The Transportation Security Administration officers discovered a 45 [.45] caliber handgun in the traveler's backpack during a routine screening at the checkpoint X-ray machine.
The officers then alerted Port Authority Police, who arrived at the Terminal C checkpoint.
They took the loaded gun and pulled the man aside,a resident of Doylestown.
The traveler, from Bucks County, was arrested on a state weapons charge.
He also faces a federal financial civil penalty for attempting to bring a weapon to a security checkpoint. Depending on the case, this civil penalty can amount to as much as $15,000.
"Travelers need to pay more attention to the items that they have inside their carry-on bags," Thomas Carter, TSA’s Federal Security Director for New Jersey, said. "So far this year our officers are stopping an average of two guns per month at our checkpoints. The number of travelers who are bringing their guns to the airport is alarming. And it is inexcusable. That’s not how to transport a gun for a flight. Responsible gun owners know this."
Nationwide, TSA officers have come across more than 5,000 firearms at security checkpoints this year alone, signaling a troubling trend.
Last year, a total of 6,542 firearms were discovered at checkpoints across the country, and the agency is currently on track to pass that record.