Authorities have stopped more than 6,000 firearms from going through airport security checkpoints so far this year, the most in the history of the Transportation Security Administration, officials said Friday.
“TSA anticipates it will prevent about 6,600 firearms in carry-on bags from entering the secure area of airports by the end of 2022, a nearly 10% increase over 2021’s record level,” officials said.Last year, officers discovered 5,972 guns at checkpoints nationwide, marking what was then an all-time high since the TSA was created 21 years ago and began tracking firearm discoveries.
The TSA said it has increased the maximum civil penalty for such violations to $14,950. Those caught with a gun at a checkpoint will also have PreCheck eligibility revoked for at least five years.Even with air travel yet to return to pre-pandemic levels, the number of guns discovered at TSA checkpoints set a 20-year record in 2020. Officials point to rising gun sales.
At Los Angeles International Airport, officers intercepted slightly fewer firearms so far this year than they did last year. Airport police work “hand-in-hand” with the TSA to respond to reports of firearms that aren’t properly secured and declared for travel, Elam said.
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