New Orleans, La.- According to a report by the New York Post, the Transportation Security Administration let New Orleans Hornets VP Joshua Richardson fly from New Orleans to Newark with a loaded handgun in his bag.
The report says Richardson had allegedly taken the weapon on his trip to the New York area by accident after he grabbed his wife's bag containing the weapon, instead of his own.
The incident was discovered Friday night when TSA agents at Newark Airport found a .38-caliber handgun in Richardson's luggage when he tried to fly home, Port Authority police reported to the New York Post.
A spokesperson for TSA released this statement to Fox 8 News Saturday morning:
"The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screens checked baggage for threats to aircraft security, such as improvised explosive devices and their components. Firearms and firearm components are not prohibited in checked baggage but do need to be properly declared and packed. Firearms transported in checked baggage must be unloaded, locked in a hard-sided container and declared by the passenger to the airline during the ticket counter check-in process."
The New York Post reports Richardson was charged with one count of criminal possession of a weapon and was expected to be released on his own recognizance.
"The investigation revealed the gun was legally registered to his wife," an airport official told the New York Post Friday night. "He said he inadvertently took his wife's luggage with the gun stored in its inside pouch."
Richardson is in charge of broadcasting and event presentation for the team.
To read the full article by The New York Post, click here.
