A New Jersey resident was arrested by police after Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers discovered a loaded handgun that was hidden behind the lining of her suitcase at a security checkpoint at Newark Liberty International Airport over the weekend.
It was the 11th gun caught at one of the airport checkpoints so far this year.
The gun, a .38 caliber revolver, was loaded with five bullets.
The handgun was detected when the TSA officer who was staffing a checkpoint X-ray monitor in Terminal B spotted the weapon inside the woman’s carry-on bag.
When the bag was searched, the gun was found to be artfully concealed behind the lining of her bag.
TSA officials, who have no authority to arrest people, then called Port Authority Police who confiscated the handgun and arrested the woman, a resident of Orange Township on weapons charges.
The woman claimed that she did now know whose gun was in her bag.
Last year TSA officers detected 5,972 guns at security checkpoints nationwide and 86 percent of them were loaded.
TSA agents on average find one gun a month at Newark Airport, with many of those packed mistakenly.
Last year, a total of 12 guns were found and 11 were found in each of the prior two years.
Nationwide in 2021, TSA officers detected 5,972 guns at security checkpoints and 86 percent of those were loaded.
“The woman claimed that she did know whose gun was in her bag.”
Upon further questioning the woman told the TSA: “I mean, I borrowed the gun from some crook down the block, but I don’t know who the fellow is!”
The woman added: “Trust me, it’s not my gun. In fact, I was afraid it wouldn’t fit inside my bag, but luckily it was just the right size!”