2 guns found at Logan
Two men who tried to take loaded guns through the TSA X-ray machines at Logan International Airport Monday face weapons charges.
“There’s a right way to travel with a firearm and a wrong way,” the Transportation Safety Administration said in a statement. “The wrong way is to bring it in a carry-on bag to a checkpoint.”
The TSA said an unidentified Arizona man was arrested on weapons charges after TSA agents found a 9 mm handgun with six bullets, including one in the chamber. A second man from New Hampshire was later cited on weapons charges after he was also found with a 9 mm handgun and an additional clip.
TSA said both guns were discovered as their owners went through the X-ray machine. The two men were detained and the guns were confiscated. The two incidents aren’t related, TSA said.
TSA said that transported guns need to be unloaded and put in a locked, hard-sided case and taken to the check-in counter to be declared to an airline representative.
“The idea is that nobody should have access to a firearm in the cabin of an airplane,” the statement continued. “It’s really a fairly simple procedure.”
Six guns have been found at Logan so far this year. The TSA said 21 guns were found in 2018 and 14 in 2017. Last year, 86% of guns brought to the checkpoint were loaded.
“As a reminder, individuals who bring firearms to the checkpoint are subject to possible criminal charges from law enforcement. Even travelers with concealed firearm permits are not allowed to bring guns onto airplanes in their carry-on bags,” TSA said. “A typical first offense for carrying a handgun into a checkpoint is $3,900.”