Gun, bullets stashed in shoes get man arrested by TSA agents in New York, officials say

A man at a New York airport was arrested after security found a gun hidden in a pair of shoes, officials said.

The checked bag was sent through the TSA explosives detective unit Nov. 1 at LaGuardia Airport when it set off an alarm, according to a Nov. 2 news release by the Transportation Security Administration. The alarm made officials open the luggage, TSA said.

When the officers opened the bag, they found a semi-automatic gun inside a white Nike high-top sneaker, agents said.

The other shoe was carrying six bullets, officials said.

The traveler was “tracked down” by Port Authority Police and arrested on weapon charges, officials said.

The man also faces a civil penalty connected to carrying weapons that can reach a maximum fine of $15,000, officials said.

However, travelers are allowed to travel with their gun if it’s stored correctly, the release said.

Travelers can fly with their firearms if they are “unloaded and locked in a hard-sided container and transported as checked baggage only” and stored in a checked bag, officials said.

Passengers then have to take the locked case to the airport’s check-in counter to be declared, officials said.

“Attempting to conceal firearms inside shoes in a checked bag doesn’t cut it,” Robert Duffy, TSA’s federal security director for the airport, said in the release. “If you want to travel with your gun, travelers only need to pack it properly.”

This story was originally published November 3, 2023 at 2:54 PM with the headline "Gun, bullets stashed in shoes get man arrested by TSA agents in New York, officials say."