13th person this year caught with gun by Pittsburgh airport security
A Crawford County man tried to take a loaded handgun through security Sunday at Pittsburgh International Airport, security officials said.
It is the fourth firearm found in carry-on luggage at the airport in the last three weeks, according to the Transportation Safety Administration.
Security agents stopped the Cochranton man after they discovered a .25-caliber handgun loaded with six rounds in his carry-on baggage, according to TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein.
Allegheny County police confiscated the gun. It is the 13th so far this year at the airport, Farbstein said.
TSA agents caught 34 guns at Pittsburgh International in 2018. Sunday’s incident puts the airport on pace to see 36 guns confiscated in 2019.
Across the country last year, 4,239 firearms were discovered in carry-on bags, Farbstein said, more than 11 per day. Of those, 86% were loaded, and more than a third had a live round in the chamber.
The typical fine for a first-time offender who brings a gun to the security checkpoint is $3,900.
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