TSA stops local woman with loaded gun at Richmond International Airport

Police at Richmond International Airport cited a woman Feb. 26 after a Transportation Security Administration officer found a loaded handgun in her carry-on bag.

The 9-mm handgun was loaded with 17 bullets. A TSA officer who was staffing the checkpoint X-ray monitor detected the handgun inside the woman’s carry-on bag as it entered the X-ray machine. It was the second gun caught at one of the airport’s checkpoints within the last five days and the third one caught this year. Officials also stopped another traveler with a 9-mm handgun Feb. 22. In 2018, TSA stopped 14 guns at the airport’s checkpoints.

TSA officials notified the airport police, which responded to the checkpoint, confiscated the gun and cited the woman on weapons charges.In total, 4,239 firearms were discovered in carry-on bags at checkpoints across the country last year, averaging about 11.6 firearms per day, approximately a 7 percent increase nationally in firearm discoveries from the total of 3,957 detected in 2017. Eighty- six percent of firearms detected at checkpoints last year were loaded and nearly 34 percent had a bullet in the chamber.

Anyone who brings weapons to the checkpoint is subject to federal civil penalties of up to $13,000. This applies to travelers with or without concealed gun carry permits because even though a person may have a concealed carry permit, it does not allow for a firearm to be carried onto an airplane. A typical first offense for carrying a handgun into a checkpoint is $3,900. The complete list of penalties is posted online at https://www.tsa.gov/travel/civil-enforcement.

Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms in checked baggage if they are properly packaged and declared. Firearms must be unloaded, packed in a hard-sided case, locked, and packed separately from ammunition. 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.

TSA has details on how to properly travel with a firearm posted on its website at http://www.tsa.gov/traveler-information/firearms-and-ammunition. Airlines may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition. Travelers should also contact their airline regarding firearm and ammunition carriage policies.