[url]http://www.channel2000.com/sh/news/stories/nat-news-aptv-100317720011004-081019.html[/url]
Channel2000.com - Shotgun Clears Security At Colorado Airport
Shotgun Clears Security At Colorado Airport
Springs Airport Security Firm Also Guarded Boston's Airport
Posted: 9:57 a.m. EDT October 4, 2001
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- A Colorado man was arrested on a
misdemeanor gun charge when an airport security guard searched his
bag and found a disassembled shotgun, but only after it had gone
through X-ray screening unnoticed.
The incident occurred Tuesday at Colorado Springs Airport (pictured,
left).
Bradley Cooper, 20, told investigators the gun and duffel bag
belonged to his roommate and he had forgotten to remove the weapon
when he borrowed the bag.
Investigators said an X-ray machine operator did not recognize the
shapes of the shotgun and six rounds of ammunition on Cooper's first
trip through security.
Cooper then left the terminal for a cigarette, taking the bag with
him. When he returned, a hand-search turned up the gun.
He was arrested on a state charge of carrying a concealed weapon.
Federal prosecutors were reviewing the case but did not immediately
file charges.
"We are not sure there is a relevant crime for him," said Dick
Weatherbee, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Denver.
"It is a federal crime to take a weapon on an aircraft, but he never
got on a plane. He was at an airport with a disassembled gun."
The X-ray machine was operated by Huntleigh Corp. Huntleigh
officials could not be reached for comment.
Affiliate Web site TheDenverChanne.com reported that Huntleigh Corp.
was guarding United Airlines' checkpoints at Logan International
Airport when terrorists boarded a flight for Los Angeles on Sept.
11. The United flight crashed into one of the World Trade Center
towers.
Huntleigh, which is based in St. Louis, provides security to
airlines at 50 airports and is among the nation's top three airline
security contractors.
The Sigura AVM Brescia shotgun was broken into three pieces, police
said. The shells were 20-gauge.
Police said Cooper's roommate, Robert Kent, 21, confirmed the
shotgun was his. Kent, who has four prior felony convictions, was
arrested for investigation of possession of a firearm by a felon.
He is to appear in U.S. District Court in Colorado Springs on
Tuesday.
Copyright 2001 by Channel2000.com. The Associated Press contributed
to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be
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