A loaded handgun was found Sunday in a passenger’s carry-on bag at the main security checkpoint of Pittsburgh International Airport, the 14th firearm found at the site this year, authorities said.
Transportation Security Administration officers observed the loaded .45-caliber handgun in a bag carried by 50-year-old Michael DiCicco just before 11 a.m., according to authorities.
Allegheny County police said they found DiCicco did not have a valid concealed carry permit but had inadvertently left the firearm in his bag.
DiCicco is not permitted to possess a firearm, county police said, and will be charged with weapons violations.
County police said they have the firearm.
Passengers who bring firearms into an airport checkpoint can face federal civil fines from the TSA of up to $10,000.
Repeat offenders can be fined up to $13,910.
One of the most recent guns found at a checkpoint was April 12. It was a .380-caliber handgun loaded with six bullets in a Butler County woman’s carry-on bag. County police said the Buffalo Township woman had a valid concealed carry permit and accidentally left the gun in her bag.
On May 27, officers prevented a Mercer County man from carrying a .380 caliber handgun loaded with eight bullets onto his flight.
When a TSA officer spotted the gun in the checkpoint X-ray machine, Allegheny County Police were alerted and confiscated the weapon.
The TSA said in a news release that when someone brings a firearm to a checkpoint, the lane comes to a standstill until police resolve the incident.
Passengers are permitted to transport firearms as checked baggage that will be transported in the belly of the plane, according to the TSA. Firearms must be properly packed and declared at their airline ticket counter.
At Pittsburgh International Airport, 35 guns were found in 2019 and 21 were found in 2020.
