Inert Bomb Found At LAX
An inactive Army National Guardsmen was arrested early Monday morning at Los Angeles International Airport after trying to pass an inert military explosive through security, police said.
The man was arrested about 6:10 a.m. and the incident forced the bomb squad to be called out.
The man was placed under arrest for being in possession of an explosive device, said Officer Nadine Hernandez of the Los Angeles Police Department.
"The bomb squad had to respond to determine if the bomb was inert or not," Hernandez said.
The item resembled an M-80 firecracker and caused a screener to be concerned, said Sgt. Greg Glodery.
"It was originally believed to be a firecracker, but it was determined that it was nonfunctioning, it would not detonate," said Grace Brady, a police spokeswoman.
An official with the Federal Aviation Administration said the device was found in the man's carryon luggage.
No evacuations were ordered at Terminal 6, where the item was discovered, Glodery said. The terminal serves Continental Airlines and portions of the United Airlines fleet.
The screening station where the item was noticed in an x-ray machine was temporarily shutdown, Glodery said.
No flights were delayed, officials said.
A terminal at LAX was evacuated for an hour last Wednesday when a cylinder was found in a planter near a second-floor entrance. The plastic object turned out to be harmless and no flights were delayed.
The international terminal also was evacuated Dec. 25 after someone reported finding a "suspicious package" that turned out to be wrapped Christmas presents.
©MMII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed