Officials in Barbados were investigating how a man allegedly boarded a commercial flight from the island nation to Miami, Florida, with a loaded revolver in his possession on Friday.
The guy was spotted carrying a pistol loaded with five.32-caliber rounds by TSA inspectors at Florida’s biggest airport, according to NBC’s Southern Florida affiliate.
The man, identified as Cameron Hinds by the station, was arrested and charged with concealing a weapon, a violation punishable in Florida by up to five years in jail and a $5,000 fine.
Hinds is alleged to have pled not guilty and will return to court in mid-December, according to the NBC affiliate.
Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados expressed alarm about the heinous incident, which began at the island’s Grantley Adams International Airport, and warned that “the ramifications for the country are terrible and vast.”
“I’ve made an urgent request for a report, which I anticipate receiving very shortly. But, as I already stated, someone — or bodies — will be held responsible “she continued.
The large breach is also a black eye for the US, which has attempted to strengthen border security in the 20 years since the September 11 attacks.
Foreign nations are required by Washington to enforce US security standards at airports with direct flights to the US.
