WARWICK , R.I. (FOX 25 / MyFoxBoston.com) - A search of a child's carry-on bag at a Rhode Island airport on Monday revealed three stuffed animals and an artfully concealed firearm.
At approximately 4:10 p.m. on Monday, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) at the TF Green Airport in Warwick reportedly found a disassembled gun and ammunition concealed inside three stuffed animals.
Security officers detected the firearm during the screening process at the TSA security checkpoint. The firearm was found in the bag of a child who was traveling with his father.
Rhode Island Airport Police responded and conducted a search of the child's bag where they found the items that caught the TSA officer's attention – the main frame of a .40 caliber firearm inside one stuffed animal, a magazine loaded with two .40 caliber rounds and a firing pin inside a second stuffed animal, and a slide release lever inside a third stuffed animal.
Police confiscated the disassembled firearm, magazine and ammunition, and interviewed the father.
The father and son were allowed to continue on their flight bound for Detroit. It's still unclear if he boarded his scheduled flight, or boarded a later flight after he was questioned by authorities.
Police think they know where the weapon came from. What's still unclear is who put the gun in the stuffed animals and if that person will face charges.
Authorities are calling this a domestic dispute, so it's unclear whether that means its the boy's mother or another person that is involved in planting these pieces inside the stuffed animals. But it appears to be someone who had access to the boy's toys.
The FBI is involved in this case, along with Rhode Island State Police, and they're calling it an ongoing investigation, so charges are possible.
The TSA reiterates that this is proof everyone – even kids – need to be screened.
The incident remains under investigation.