Greenwich Woman Brought Loaded Gun Into JFK Airport Security Checkpoint: TSA

GREENWICH, CT — A Greenwich woman was arrested on Feb. 10 after Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers stopped her from bringing a loaded handgun through a security checkpoint at John F. Kennedy International Airport, according to a news release from the TSA.

The woman, who was not named, did not have a ticket to fly, but she had what's called a "gate pass" to escort her minor child through security and to the departing gate.

Officials said the .22 caliber gun was loaded with nine rounds, including one in the chamber. As the woman entered the security checkpoint, an X-ray machine alerted to her carry-on bag, which required closer inspection.

The gun was confiscated by Port Authority Police who arrested the woman on weapons charges, officials said. The woman now faces a stiff financial civil penalty for bringing a gun to a TSA security checkpoint, as the penalty was recently increased to a maximum of $15,000.

"Our TSA team at JFK perform their jobs exceptionally well with a keen focus to our mission," said John Essig in a news release. Essig is the TSA’s federal security director for the airport.

"When dangerous items such as loaded guns are brought to a security checkpoint, it represents a serious safety concern. When a bullet is in the chamber of the firearm, it is an accident waiting to happen. Nobody is permitted to carry a firearm through a checkpoint— not a gate pass holder, not someone with a concealed weapons permit, not a traveler," Essig added.

The TSA said in a news release that this was the first firearm it has detected at the airport in 2023. Last year, TSA officers prevented seven firearms from getting through checkpoints at JFK; all of the guns were loaded.

Last year, the agency said 6,542 firearms were caught at 262 out of 430 airport security checkpoints nationwide; 88 percent of those firearms were loaded.

Passengers are permitted to travel with firearms in checked baggage. Firearms must be unloaded then packed in a hard-sided locked case. The locked case should be taken to the airline check-in counter to be declared.

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