A Queens, N.Y., man was arrested by police after his backpack alarmed for a loaded firearm at a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint at LaGuardia Airport on Wednesday, July 31.
When the backpack was identified as containing a firearm, it was automatically diverted to a different conveyor belt to be held for law enforcement to inspect, when the man jumped onto the rollers, grabbed the backpack and ran. TSA officers chased the man as he fled, removed the bag from his possession, and they held him while waiting for Port Authority Police to arrive.
The police arrested the man and charged him with weapons violations.
The man, a resident of the St. Albans neighborhood in Queens was ticketed to fly to Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, N.C., and was in possession of a 9mm handgun that was loaded, including a bullet in the chamber.
It was the seventh gun that TSA officers have detected at the airport checkpoints so far this year.
In addition to being arrested, this individual now faces a stiff financial civil penalty. Civil penalties for carrying weapons can reach a maximum of $15,000.
“This was a very dangerous situation that resulted in a temporary five-minute closure of the checkpoint until we were certain that there was no threat to the security and safety of individuals in the immediate area,” said Robert Duffy, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport. “When someone has possession of a loaded gun in an airport, there is no way of knowing what his intention might be. In this instance, when he climbed over the conveyor belt, grabbed the backpack and took off, our officers feared the worst. Fortunately, we were able to subdue the individual. Our partnership with the Port Authority Police Department resulted in the confiscation of the firearm and the man’s arrest. Bottom line is that the situation was resolved without anyone getting harmed.”