N.Y.Airport-Woman Tries to Bring Stun Gun onto Plane
 

Woman tries to bring stun gun on plane

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: Jan 1, 2012 20:19 Updated: Jan 1, 2012 23:19



NEW YORK/MIDLAND: Authorities say a college student from China was arrested trying to carry a combination stun gun and flashlight onto a plane in New York City.

Sihui “Hannah” Xie said by phone Sunday that she pleaded not guilty and believes her weapons-possession case is on track to be resolved with a fine. Court records were not immediately available.

The Transportation Security Administration says a checkpoint screener spotted the item in Xie’s carry-on luggage as she headed for an Orlando, Florida-bound flight at Kennedy Airport. The TSA says the device initially just appeared to be a flashlight, but the screener looked more closely and saw it also was a stun gun.
Xie was then arrested. She’s a student at Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas.


In another incident, a man was detained after trying to go through a security checkpoint at a Texas airport with explosives in military-grade wrapping, federal and local officials said.
The man was stopped Saturday at a security checkpoint at the Midland International Airport about 9 a.m. and taken into custody by the FBI, they said.
FBI spokesman Mike Martinez declined to say whether the man was in military uniform or how many explosives were found in the bag. He said he did not know where the man was being held, saying he was at either the airport or at the FBI office in Midland.


Police Sgt. Brian Rackow told the Midland Reporter-Telegram and Odessa American that the man identified himself to investigating officials as being active in the military. He and his family had been in the area visiting relatives and were on their way back to his base in North Carolina, Rackow said.
It's not clear which base, and Rackow did not immediately return phone calls to The Associated Press for comment.


City spokeswoman Tasa Watts said she had no information on the suspect but the explosives were wrapped in military-grade wrapping. She said the specific grade won't be known until the explosives are tested.


The Transportation Security Administration issued a statement saying one of its officers spotted a suspicious item in a carry-on bag during X-ray screening. It said the checkpoint was closed for about an hour while officers investigated and removed the item.


Watts said the man was entering a terminal when he was stopped, and a sweep was done to clear that terminal before normal operations resumed.
An American Airlines spokesman said the man had a reservation on Flight 3283 from Midland to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. The departure time for the American Eagle plane was 9:45 a.m.