NORFOLK, Va. — An airline employee says he mistakenly brought a loaded gun with him through a TSA security checkpoint at the Norfolk International Airport on Monday.
The Chesapeake resident told officials he had forgotten that he had his loaded gun with him, the TSA wrote in a news release.
The gun was caught when the man entered the security checkpoint. The x-ray unit alerted staff when his carry-on went through and they found the gun upon further inspection. The handgun was removed by local police, who cited the man on a weapons charge.
His employee airport ID was also confiscated, meaning he can no longer access secure areas of the airport.
He also faces a penalty of up to $15,000 for carrying weapons through a TSA security checkpoint.
“This was a good catch on the part of our TSA team here at Norfolk,” said Robin Burke, TSA’s Federal Security Director for the airport. “As we all know, passengers are not permitted to carry their firearms through a security checkpoint. That goes for individuals who work at the airport as well as travelers. In this instance, this represented a possible insider threat with the individual being an airline employee.”