Richmond TSA screeners find fake suicide vest in checked baggage
RICHMOND, Va. - A checked bag passing through the X-ray machine at Richmond International Airport on Saturday contained some "suspicious" items, including a suicide vest, two guns and an old military manual on incendiary devices, the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) said. The vest and guns, however, were props and plastic replicas.
Officials tracked down the owner, who is a local resident of Henrico County, Virginia. While being held for questioning, the man told officials that the items were all props intended for use in a live-action role-playing game.
"The good news is that there was nothing harmful in the bag," said TSA's Richmond Federal Security Director Chuck Burke. "The items looked realistic by design. Bringing items to an airport that are meant to resemble items known to be used by terrorists . . . well I don't know what the man could have been thinking would come of it." Burke continued to say, "The expertise of the TSA workforce and the cooperation among the responding agencies--Richmond Airport Police and the FBI was exactly how our partnerships are meant to work."