Yesterday, a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) made a shocking discovery in a checked baggage screening room. Inside two jars of peanut butter, the officer found parts of a disassembled semi-automatic handgun artfully concealed in plastic. The gun’s magazine was loaded with bullets.
When the checked bag triggered an alarm in a Terminal 8 X-ray unit, the TSA officer opened the bag and found the concealed firearm parts. TSA officials then alerted the Port Authority Police, who confiscated the items and arrested the traveler, a Rhode Island man, who was still in the terminal.
According to John Essig, TSA’s Federal Security Director for JFK Airport, “The gun parts were artfully concealed in two smooth creamy jars of peanut butter, but there was certainly nothing smooth about the way the man went about trying to smuggle his gun. Our officers are good at their jobs and are focused on their mission—especially during the busy holiday travel period.”
It is legal to transport firearms on a flight as long as the traveler has a proper permit and the gun is properly packed. Firearms and firearm parts must be unloaded, packed in a locked hard-sided case, and declared at the airline check-in counter. Replica firearms are not allowed in carry-on baggage and must also be transported in checked luggage.
The individual who was arrested for attempting to bring an undeclared weapon onto a flight may face significant civil penalties, including a fine of up to $15,000. This penalty has recently been increased from its previous maximum amount. A complete list of civil penalties can be found online.
TSA has not identified the Rhode Island man.
