20th gun stopped at RIC checkpoint this year
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Transportation Security Administration officers stopped the 20th gun at a Richmond International Airport checkpoint so far this year Nov. 28.
Officials detected a .380 caliber handgun and a magazine loaded with nine bullets among a Florida man’s belongings as they entered the security checkpoint X-ray machine at the airport.
They alerted airport police, who responded to the checkpoint, confiscated the handgun and arrested the man. He told officials that he knew that he had his handgun with him when he entered the checkpoint and that he originally wanted to place the gun in a checked bag, but claimed that he did not know where to find the Spirit Airlines check-in counter. Instead, he said he planned to carry his gun to the gate in hopes he might be able to check his gun upon boarding his flight.
“Under no circumstances should anyone attempt to bring a handgun through a security checkpoint,” said TSA Federal Security Director for Richmond International Airport Chuck Burke. “This was the 20th firearm detected this year at Richmond International Airport. Claiming that you are not aware of the location of airline ticket counters is not an excuse. Every airport employee would have informed him of the location.”
A typical first offense for carrying a loaded handgun into a checkpoint is $4,100 but can be as much as $13,669 depending upon other circumstances. If a traveler with a gun is a member of TSA PreCheck, he or she will lose those privileges.
Only 14 guns were stopped at checkpoints at the airport during each of the past two years. This year’s total is the most since 2017, when 18 guns were confiscated there.
Nationwide last year, 4,432 firearms were discovered in carry-on bags at checkpoints across the country, averaging about 12.1 firearms per day, approximately a 5% increase nationally in firearm discoveries from the total of 4,239 detected in 2018. Eighty-seven percent of firearms detected at checkpoints last year were loaded.
TSA has details on how to properly travel with a firearm posted on its website at https://www.tsa.gov/travel/transporting-firearms-and-ammunition. Travelers also should contact their airlines, which may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition.
