Arrest at LaGuardia after man jumps conveyor belt, grabs loaded gun and flees

August 2, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

TSA officers stopped a man with this handgun at a LaGuardia Airport security checkpoint on July 31. Photo: TSA

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QUEENS — AFTER A SCANNER set off an alarm indicating a loaded firearm in a backpack at a security checkpoint at LaGuardia Airport on July 31, the backpack’s owner jumped onto the conveyor belt’s rollers, grabbed the backpack and ran, which set off a chase by Transportation Security Administration officers, a TSA spokesperson said in a release. TSA officers chased the man down, removed his bag and held him until Port Authority Police arrived and arrested him. The man, a resident of St. Albans, Queens, was ticketed to fly to Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, N.C. The 9mm handgun had a bullet in the chamber, according to the TSA. The man was charged with weapons violations and also faces a civil penalty up to $15,000. This was the seventh gun that TSA officers have detected at LaGuardia checkpoints so far this year

“This was a very dangerous situation that resulted in a temporary five-minute closure of the checkpoint,” said Robert Duffy, TSA’s federal security director at the airport. “When he climbed over the conveyor belt, grabbed the backpack and took off, our officers feared the worst. Fortunately, we were able to subdue the individual.”

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