The TSA missed another gun at a security checkpoint this week. The TSA only found the gun when Hornets Vice President Joshua Richardson tried to get past security on another flight.
Earlier this week, the New Orleans Hornets executive was able to board a plane from New Orleans to Newark, New Jersey with a loaded handgun in his luggage.
New Orleans Hornets executive to board a plane from New Orleans to Newark, N.J. on Wednesday with a loaded handgun in his baggage. Richardson claims that he brought the bag with the gun by accident and that it belonged to his wife. Investigators found that the gun is registered to his wife. The weapon was not detected before the first flight, according to the New York Post.
It wasn't clear if the weapon was in Richardson's carry-on or checked luggage, but the TSA says that guns must not be loaded even if they are in checked luggage. The security threat is higher if the loaded weapon is in a carry-on.
The TSA learned of their mistake when they caught Richardson with the gun on Friday night. He tried to board his flight home at Newark with the .38 caliber gun still in his luggage.
Richardson was charged with one count of criminal possession of a weapon. The 36-year-old is expected to be released on his own recognizance.
This incident comes a day after the TSA failed to spot another gun at a security checkpoint at Orlando International Airport. A female firefighter, who is licensed to carry a weapon, accidentally brought the gun on the flight to Newark.
She realized that she had the loaded gun once she was on the plane and immediately told a Port Authority Police officer about it when she got to the airport in New Jersey.
The officer that allowed the loaded gun to pass through security has been removed from screening duties and may face further disciplinary action as the case is investigated further.
Rep. John Mica, the Florida Republican who chairs the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee expressed his concern over the way that the TSA handles things.
"Unfortunately the reports I get, it's not just this one weapon. It's hundreds of items every day," Mica said, as quoted by the New York Post. "It can't be tolerated."
While the TSA is under fire for these latest incidents of missed weapons, they cited how many weapons they prevent from passing through security.
"TSA screens nearly 2 million people every day, including their carry-on and checked luggage. An average four firearms are intercepted every day at airport checkpoints. This year alone, travelers have attempted to carry nearly 1,100 weapons through security and into the sterile area, attempts thwarted by TSA Officers," an agency spokesman told ABC.
The TSA is now investigating the incident as they said they take these issues very seriously.
agency stressed it takes incidents like these seriously and is conducting a full review of each.
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