TSA Finds Another Gun In Carry-On At Midway Airport
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A Homer Glen man was arrested Wednesday morning at Midway International Airport, after security officers found a loaded handgun in his carry-on bag.
The Transportation Security Administration said officers found the loaded .40 caliber Glock 22 in the man's bag when it went through an X-ray machine at the Midway security checkpoint.
TSA officers contacted Chicago police, who took the man into custody.
"Chicago PD comes over to the checkpoint. They take possession of that firearm, and arrested the passenger on a state charge," said TSA spokesman Mike McCarthy.
Timothy McGraw, 36, was charged with one misdemeanor count of carrying a concealed firearm at an airport.
McGraw was ticketed for a flight to Nashville.
There has been a spike this year in the number of guns found in carry-on luggage at airports.
"This is the 13th firearm that TSA detected at Midway this year. That's up quite a bit from last year, where we detected six firearms," he said. "Nationally, we have seen a trend where there are more and more firearms coming to our checkpoints, and we really just want to make sure we educate passengers about the right way and the wrong way to travel with a firearm."
McGraw is a concealed carry permit holder, but the state law does not allow permit holders to carry guns at airports, and federal law prohibits firearms from being transported in carry-on bags. They must instead be placed in checked bags, and only if they are unloaded, properly secured, and declared to the airline.