A Brooklyn man allegedly tried to get a .22-caliber handgun through a security checkpoint at JFK Airport by concealing its parts inside a PlayStation2 console.
Photo Courtesy of TSA
Game over.
A Brooklyn man last week was arrested by Port Authority police officers on weapons charges after Transportation Security Administration officers at John F. Kennedy International Airport detected parts of a .22 caliber semi-automatic handgun concealed among his belongings—including a video-game console—as he tried to catch a morning flight to Mexico City, according to a TSA spokeswoman.
Various components of the man’s gun were found hidden inside a PlayStation2, and others were tucked alongside a tripod, and in his other belongings.
According to the TSA, as the man was passing through the security checkpoint, TSA officers detected something unusual among his carry-on items as they rolled through the x-ray machine. While officers investigated, they decided to remove the bottom of the PlayStation2, which was in the man’s carry-on bag. That’s where TSA officers discovered a piece of a .22 caliber gun concealed inside the console.
In 2014, more than 2,100 guns have been confiscated at airport checkpoints, a 16 percent increase from the 1,813 guns detected by TSA officers in 2013.
The agency pointed out that passengers who bring firearms to checkpoints are subject to possible criminal charges from law enforcement and civil penalties from the TSA up to $11,000.
By Michael V. Cusenza
