(Trends Wide) — A firearm discovered inside a raw chicken at a Florida airport security checkpoint has the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) stumped.
In late September, a concealed firearm was found in a chicken at a TSA checkpoint in Florida. Credit: Transportation Security Administration
“The plot thickens,” the Transportation Security Administration posted on Instagram this week after someone at the agency felt funny and called attention to the mountain of time it takes to stuff a bird with a firearm.
The passenger was en route to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, according to Sari Koshetz, TSA spokeswoman for the Gulf region.
Nestor Iglesias, a spokesman for Homeland Security Investigations, the investigative arm of the US Department of Homeland Security, said he could not provide further details because it is an “ongoing criminal case that has been accepted for prosecution.”
A record number of weapons have ended up at TSA checkpoints in Florida so far in 2022: more than 700 weapons, a number already higher than any previous year, according to a TSA news release.
Records have been set at 12 Florida airports, with Orlando (129 guns), Fort Lauderdale (120 guns), and Tampa (102 guns) leading the way.
Nearly all of the weapons discovered at the checkpoints were loaded, according to the TSA, and most contained ammunition.
“An accidental discharge could result in a tragedy,” the TSA’s Koshetz said in a statement. “Every passenger has a responsibility to know exactly where his gun is before entering the security checkpoint.”
For many passengers, bringing weapons into airports has led to arrests and notices to appear in court.
TSA civil penalties can reach $13,910, even if the passenger is not detained, according to the TSA press release.
Firearms must go in checked baggage. The TSA outlines the specific regulations related to weapons and ammunition on its website.
