Long Island MacArthur security stops traveler with loaded gun in carry-on bag, TSA says

A Sayville man was stopped by airport security Sunday with a loaded handgun in his carry-on bag at Long Island MacArthur Airport, Transportation Security Administration officials said.

TSA agents intercepted the passenger as he walked through a security checkpoint and placed his bag on a luggage X-ray machine. The passenger had a 9 mm pistol, loaded with 10 bullets, in the carry-on bag, officials said.

TSA agents notified Suffolk County police. TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said police allowed the passenger to leave the airport with the weapon. Town of Islip spokeswoman Caroline Smith said that after being cleared by police, the passenger booked a different flight. 

The TSA originally said the passenger returned the gun to his vehicle.

The passenger was not identified but he faces up to $15,000 in fines.

“Bringing a gun to an airport security checkpoint introduces unnecessary delays to fellow travelers and of course represents a security risk,” said Robert Duffy, TSA’s federal security director for the airport.

Firearms and other weapons can only be carried in checked baggage if they are unloaded and packed in a hard-sided locked case, according to the TSA. The locked case also needs to be declared at the airline check-in counter, according to regulations.

Officials said it was the first gun intercepted at MacArthur Airport this year.

Last year, 6,735 firearms were intercepted at airport security checkpoints nationwide, of which 93% were loaded. 

There have been five guns found at MacArthur Airport in the past six years. The TSA reported two guns seized there last year, none from 2020 to 2022, and three seized from 2018 through 2019.

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.