Passenger charged after bringing gun to Chicago O'Hare International Airport
A St. Charles
man was charged after bringing a gun
in his bag to Chicago O'Hare International Airport on Tuesday afternoon.
Police said Besnik Ismajlaj, 53, was charged with a misdemeanor count of carrying a concealed firearm at the airport.
The Transportation Security Administration said officers detected an image of a firearm inside a bag going through Security Checkpoint 2 at Terminal 1.
Before Chicago police could confiscate the gun, the Ismajlaj reached inside the X-ray machine at the checkpoint, took the bag, and left for the gate, the TSA said.
Video showed airport employees making a path down the middle of Terminal 1 as officers ran through. They were searching for Ismajlaj as he was headed to his gate with a gun.
One social media user posted, "CPD just yanked a guy off my flight at O'Hare," and added, "Now they made us deplane and do a full security sweep of the plane."
A police source told CBS News Chicago the man arrested was a Firearm Owners Identification Card and concealed carry license holder.
Ismajlaj is expected in court on June 9.
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