Allegheny County Police do not anticipate filing charges against a man who had a handgun in his carry-on bag Friday evening at the Pittsburgh International Airport in Moon Township.
TSA officers observed a loaded .380-caliber Glock in the man’s backpack at the airport’s main security checkpoint shortly after 7 p.m. Friday evening. County police said the man possessed a concealed-carry permit.
They alerted the county police and FBI, who determined the man had mistakenly left the gun in his bag.
It was taken by county police, and the man was permitted to fly.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, loaded handguns were discovered in the bags of passengers from Ohio and Beaver County, respectively.
Passengers are not allowed to carry a gun onto airplanes. However, they can transport their firearms as checked baggage if they are properly packed and declared at the ticket counter.
And while no charges were filed in Friday’s incident, that is not always the case.
“Responsible gun owners know where their firearms are at all times and don’t make these sorts of careless mistakes. Now each individual faces significant penalties from TSA that could cost them thousands of dollars,” Pittsburgh TSA Security Director Karen Keys-Turner said Wednesday regarding the first two incidents.
