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Missile Launcher Found in Luggage at BWI

Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport
creative commons
Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport

BALTIMORE (AP) - Federal officials say they've found a missile launcher in a man's luggage at the airport in Baltimore.

The Transportation Security Administration said in a statement that the military grade weapon was located in the man's checked luggage at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

TSA officers called airport police who found the man and detained him for questioning. The unidentified traveler said he was in the military and coming home from Kuwait. He said he wanted to keep the weapon as a souvenir.

The TSA said the missile launcher was "not a live device." But it was handed over to the state fire marshal for disposal.

The man lives in Jacksonville, Texas, which is about 115 miles (185 kilometers) east of Dallas. He was ultimately allowed to catch his flight home.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.