MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Transportation Security Administration officers reported an increase in the number of undeclared firearms they are finding inside carry-on baggage at checkpoints. This is while TSA reported screening about 75% fewer passengers than last year.
Dan Ronan, the TSA federal security director at Miami International Airport, released a statement on Tuesday saying agents have discovered undeclared firearms at MIA checkpoints at a rate 2.5 times higher than last year. He is attributing this to fliers’ forgetfulness.
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“Most of MIA’s passenger traffic these past few months has been domestic travelers who may have other pressing matters on their mind when they are packing for their trip,” Ronan said Tuesday in a statement.
Passengers are required to declare they are carrying a firearm at check-in with the airline. The firearms must be unloaded, packed in a hard-sided case and locked. The ammunition cannot be in carry-on baggage. It has to be checked in. Each airline has a policy regarding firearm and ammunition.
According to TSA Administrator David Pekoske, about 80% of the undeclared firearms found at airport checkpoints around the nation are loaded.
“It’s just an accident waiting to happen,” Pekoske said.
Ronan and Pekoske want the public to remember the violation comes with civil penalties and criminal prosecution.
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