Man Arrested At LaGuardia Airport After Carrying Loaded Gun: TSA

QUEENS — A Brooklyn man was arrested after he carried a loaded gun through a security checkpoint at LaGuardia Airport on Tuesday, Transportation Security Administration officials said.

The traveler was arrested after officials found a .22 caliber firearm along with 110 bullets in his carry-on after it was scanned at the checkpoint X-ray unit, TSA officials said.

The man was arrested on a weapons charge and faces a penalty of up to $15,000, officials said.

The Brooklyn man said he forgot to remove the gun from his bag after he had taken it to a shooting range, TSA officials said.

The incident comes a week after a man was arrested at the John F. Kennedy Airport for carrying an unloaded gun, claiming the firearm didn't belong to him, according to officials.

“People carrying guns to our checkpoints represent a serious security and safety concern,” said Robert Duffy, TSA’s Federal Security Director for LaGuardia Airport. “The fact that the majority of people tell us that they forgot that they had their loaded gun with them is equally disconcerting.

Last year, 6,542 firearms were caught at 262 out of 430 airport security checkpoints nationwide. Of those guns, 88 percent were loaded.