Something tells us a baby definitely didn’t pull this one off.
TSA detained a man at New York’s LaGuardia Airport on Wednesday after agents found 17 bullets tucked inside a diaper in his carry-on bag.
The man, who authorities say is a resident of Arkansas, set off an alarm while going through security. TSA searched his belongings and found the bullets “artfully concealed” inside the “otherwise clean” diaper.
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TSA said in a release that the traveler first told officials that “he did not know how the bullet-filled diaper came to be in his carry-on bag” but later switched his stance by suggesting that “his girlfriend must have put it in his bag.”
The 17 bullets next to the diaper that they were found in at a security checkpoint at LaGuardia Airport (TSA)
Airport personnel alerted Port Authority police, who charged the man with “unlawful possession of 9mm ammunition.” Ammunition is prohibited in carry-on baggage but may be transported in checked baggage if packed in a way that complies with TSA regulations.
“Apparently this guy needs a bullet-proof plan for packing his carry-on bag before heading to the airport for his next flight,” the TSA report said.
The man has not been publicly identified. It’s unclear if he continued on to his flight.
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The TSA reported it has intercepted an increased number of handguns and firearms in passengers’ baggage this year.
In the first three quarters of 2023, it stopped 5,072 firearms from going through security checkpoints, a number that’s expected to surpass the 2022 record of 6,542 firearms intercepted by the end of the year.
If a passenger is caught with a firearm in their carry-on baggage, law enforcement will be called to the security checkpoint, where the passenger may be arrested or given a citation. TSA may impose a civil penalty of up to $15,000. Passengers will also lose TSA PreCheck eligibility for five years.
