After a 9-year-old boy was able to get through airport security and board a plane without a ticket at Minneapolis airport, the TSA acknowledges that some changes need to be made.
On Thursday morning, the TSA screened the Minneapolis boy at the airport just after 10:30 a.m. and was able to board a Delta flight to Las Vegas at 11:15 a.m. The flight crew became suspicious and contacted the Las Vegas police. The police met the boy upon landing and he is under custody of child protective services. It is expected that the boy will return to Twin Cities, KARE reports.
The TSA is now investigating the incident and is trying to determine how to avoid it in the future.
"I've worked at the airport for 13 years, and we have more than 33 million people go through the terminal every year, and I've never heard of anything like this happening before," Metropolitan Airports Commission spokesman Patrick Hogan told CBS.
Some say that the mistake may have been made as the TSA is short staffed right now as many employees were furloughed among the federal government shutdown.
"We're investigating ... and looking into our part to see what occurred and what didn't occur," said the TSA spokesperson.
On Sunday, the TSA said "The child was screened along with all other passengers to ensure that he was not a threat to the aircraft." They claimed to have reviewed the security tape and "and are investigating whether they should reconfigure the barriers to prevent another incident like this one."
Delta airline is cooperating with authorities and the TSA in the investigation.
Thursday wasn't the first time the boy was at the airport. He was seen eating at an airport restaurant on Wednesday. He had stolen a suitcase from the baggage claim and went to the restaurant to have lunch. He asked the server to watch his luggage, saying he had to use the bathroom, but he bailed on the bill and never returned.
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