NORFOLK, Va. — A Kentucky man was stopped by airport security officers for bringing his gun to Norfolk International Airport Wednesday, two days after another person did the same thing, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said.
The gun was a .380 caliber gun loaded with six bullets, including one in the chamber, according to TSA.
TSA officers found the gun as the man entered a security checkpoint. An X-ray unit alerted officers of the carry-on bag, requiring a closer inspection of what was inside.
Norfolk police officers removed the firearm and then cited the man on state charges. He also faces a civil penalty for bringing a gun to a security checkpoint, which carries a maximum of $15,000, the TSA said.
“Wednesday marked the sixth gun that our officers in Norfolk have prevented from being carried onto a flight so far this young year,” Robin “Chuck” Burke, TSA’s federal security director for the airport, wrote in a news release. “Our team stopped a gun at the checkpoint on Monday and again on Wednesday. Let’s hope that folks get the message that they should not be trying to bring a gun through our checkpoints."
Burke added that those with a concealed carry permit or enrolled in TSA's PreCheck program aren't exempt from the policy.
For more information about how to properly travel with a firearm, visit TSA's website.