Peanut butter jars set off airport alarm in New York, TSA says. Now, a man is arrested
Brendan RasciusFri, December 23, 2022 at 6:09 PM EST
Photo from the TSA
Jars of peanut butter stashed in a traveler’s checked luggage at a New York City airport triggered an alarm which resulted in his arrest.
On Thursday, Dec. 22 , TSA officers at John F. Kennedy International Airport opened the checked bag after it set off an alarm when passing through an X-ray, according to a statement from the agency.
They removed two jars of JIF creamy peanut butter from the luggage, each of which contained pieces of a dismantled semi-automatic handgun “artfully concealed inside,” the agency stated.
The parts, including a magazine loaded with .22 caliber bullets, were encased in plastic and shoved into the peanut butter, according to the agency.
When they found the weapon, officials contacted police who confiscated the gun parts and tracked down the man who owned the luggage in an airport terminal, the agency stated. The man, a resident of Rhode Island, was arrested.
“Our officers are good at their jobs and are focused on their mission—especially during the busy holiday travel period,” John Essig, the TSA’s federal security director for JFK Airport, stated.
The man, whose name has not been released, could be slapped with a civil penalty of up to $15,000, according to the TSA.
In order for firearms to be legally transported on a plane, they need to be placed in checked baggage, properly packed and unloaded, and declared at the check-in counter, the agency stated. The person checking the weapon must also have a proper permit.
Earlier this year, officials at an airport in Pennsylvania discovered vape canisters and plastic-wrapped marijuana concealed in a jar of peanut butter after an alarm was triggered, according to previous reporting from McClatchy News.
So far in 2022, 6,301 firearms have been intercepted at airport security checkpoints, surpassing the previous record in 2021, according to the TSA. Eighty-eight percent of the firearms found were loaded.
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