Officials: Man attempted to board flight at BWI with knife, no boarding pass
A Maryland man allegedly smuggled a knife through security at Baltimore-Washington International Airport on July 3 without a boarding pass and attempted to board a flight, officials told ABC News.
The Transportation Security Administration said an individual, identified by police as 23-year-old John Edward Hill, Jr., 23, "intentionally circumvented the ticket document checking station and then went through the screening process."
A gate agent caught Hill attempting to board a flight, according to TSA spokesperson Lisa Farbstein, and called Maryland Transportation Authority Police who responded to the gate.
According to MDTA spokesman Cpl. Edward Bartlinski, officers responded and found “a small knife” in Hill's waistband. He was placed under arrest and now faces interfering with security procedures, tampering with security systems, entering a restricted area without authorization and possession of unauthorized weapons prohibited in an airport. He is being held without bond.
"We believe there to be no nexus to terrorism but aren’t sure what Mr. Hill was trying to accomplish," Bartlinski told ABC News.
TSA says it is taking the incident very seriously, "however, in today's post 9/11 security environment, intelligence tells us our officers’ greatest focus remains on the biggest threat to aviation today - explosives and explosives components," Farbstein said in a statement provided to ABC News.
"We, along with industry partners, including the airlines and law enforcement, reviewed ways to keep this from happening again," Farbstein said in a statement. "Immediate measures were taken to review the techniques of the TSA officers who were working at the checkpoint, to ensure they are employing the proper protocols."
