Gun Seized At NJ Airport, Man Arrested; ‘Record-Setting’ Year Continues

NEWARK, NJ — Police recently arrested a Morris County resident after he went through a checkpoint at Newark Airport with a loaded gun, authorities announced Monday.

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers intercepted a Morristown resident’s handgun when he entered a security checkpoint at the airport on Thursday, authorities said.

The gun was loaded with eight bullets, officials said.

After TSA officers detected the firearm, they contacted Port Authority police. Officers confiscated the gun and ammunition and arrested the man – who now faces a stiff federal financial penalty, authorities said.

Guns can be transported on a flight if they are unloaded, packed in a locked, hard-sided case and declared to the airline. The airline will be sure that the gun travels with checked baggage in the belly of the plane, never in the cabin of the plane.

According to the TSA, this applies to people with or without concealed gun carry permits because even though an individual may have a concealed carry permit, it does not allow for a firearm to be carried onto an airplane.

The federal penalty for bringing a weapon to a TSA checkpoint can cost as much as $15,000, depending on the circumstances.

“We have detected nine firearms overall for the year, a record-setting pace,” said Thomas Carter, TSA’s federal security director for New Jersey.

• See Related: Record-Setting Pace For Gun Seizures At Newark Airport, TSA Says

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