Hot on Facebook

Angry Dad Shoots Daughter's Laptop ... after she criticized her parents on Facebook »

Airport Screener Out of Job After Prank

Teased passenger with fake bag of drugs

By the Associated Press

Posted Jan 23, 2010 3:26 PM CST

(AP) – A college student returning to school after the winter break fell victim to a prank at Philadelphia's airport by a TSA worker who pretended to find a plastic bag of white powder in her carry-on luggage. The worker is no longer employed by the TSA, said a spokeswoman, who declined to say whether he was fired or quit.

"He let me stutter through an explanation for the longest minute of my life," wrote Rebecca Solomon, 22, in the Michigan Daily college paper. "Tears streamed down my face as I pleaded with him to understand that I'd never seen this baggie before." A short time later, she said, the worker smiled and said it was his. "He waved the baggie at me and told me he was kidding, that I should’ve seen the look on my face."

Passengers wait in a security line. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

CLICK BELOW TO VOTE

12%

10%

59%

16%

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Getty Images

Which Celebrity Wants His Johnson Back? (NewsOne)

Man Impaled With Golf Club for Playing Too Slowly (HuffPost)

Odd Way Katy Perry Signed Her Divorce Settlement (CeleBuzz)

20 Hotties You'd Never Want to Marry (Bleacher Report)

We Can't Do That To Mom (Slate)

Partner Links

A snapshot of the day's best news stories.

View Larger Grid

All Today Yesterday Pick a Date

COMMENTS

Read the comment policy

Showing 3 of 38 comments

YetAnotherCollegeKid

Jan 25, 2010 5:28 AM CST

Well, their job is kind of like 'the office' with guns and the potential for people to try to kill you. I can see how that would wear on the psyche after a while.

YetAnotherCollegeKid

Jan 25, 2010 5:21 AM CST

Interesting thought, flight. There are about 6 key differences. 1. Trains are stuck to the tracks. Planes can go anywhere. 2. Trains are a lot slower, providing more opportunities for the passengers in a rough situation. 3. Trains are on the ground, where SWAT and company can get to them (also, far easier for SWAT to board than a plane, especially undetected). 4. Trains are more difficult to crash. 5. Trains are generally not in the center of cities, but rather on the edges. This makes them less appealing targets for terrorists trying to send a message. 6. Guns are legal on trains, providing another variable that terrorists can't control. There are probably some other reasons that I missed, but the end result is that trains just aren't as appealing to terrorists as planes are.

stanooch

Jan 25, 2010 5:20 AM CST

He needs a good-ole-southern-boy-type public ass whuppin'!

What's Popular Now on Facebook

Facebook Defriending Triggers Double Murder

Frisbees Are OK on LA Beaches

Associated Press (Source Grid »)

Philadelphia • airport security • TSA • airport screener

More Newser Stories

New Record: Kobayashi Scarfs 337 Chicken Wings

In just half an hour

(NEWSER) - Competitive eating legend Takeru Kobayashi wolfed down 337 chicken wings in half an hour today in Philadelphia, shattering the previous record of 255, set just last year. Some 20,000 spectators turned up for Wing Bowl XX, and Kobayashi took home a $20,000 cash prize, the AP reports. It was Kobayashi's first year at the Bowl, the Philadelphia Inquirer notes. "I could probably eat another 100 wings or so," he said afterward. More»

Rand Paul's TSA Scuffle Now Raking in Cash for Dad

Ron Paul urges supporters to contribute to 'End the TSA Money Bomb'

(NEWSER) - Rand Paul's "detainment" by the TSA couldn't have been timed better: Dad Ron is now using Monday's incident to raise funds for his presidential campaign, the Daily Caller reports. The elder Paul emailed supporters asking them to contribute to his "End the TSA Money Bomb," so that he can work to dissolve the "theatrical sham that is the TSA." More»

Rand Paul Refuses TSA Patdown, Gets Detained

Ron Paul's son being detained 'indefinitely,' says spokesperson

(NEWSER) - Apparently the Pauls are willing to go quite far to maintain their libertarian principles: Rand Paul, son of presidential candidate Ron Paul, was detained by the TSA at Nashville International Airport this morning when he refused to submit to a patdown, WSMV reports. A Paul spokesperson confirms that the Kentucky senator "was being detained indefinitely. The image scan went off, he refused patdown." A tweet from his father cites an "anomaly" with the body scanner, Politico notes. More»

TSA: We Were Right to Take That Cupcake

...because it was a cupcake in a jar

(NEWSER) - Cupcakegate 2011 is proving to have quite the shelf life. The TSA commented on the sugary brouhaha this week, by way of a blog post on the topic. If you'll recall, security agents in Las Vegas confiscated a cupcake that Rebecca Hains was trying to take through security late last month because of its gel-like frosting. Outrage ensued. But as the TSA explains, there's one problem with the whole story: Hains wasn't carrying a traditional cupcake through security. More»

People Left $409K in Coins at Airport Checkpoints

And the TSA is keeping it

(NEWSER) - Your weird stat of the day, courtesy of the Hill : Passengers left behind $409,085.56 in spare change while going through airport security checkpoints last year. The biggest haul by far came at JFK, where about $47,000 was collected, followed by Los Angeles International ($19,000), Atlanta's Hartfield-Jackson ($16,500), San Francisco ($16,000), and Miami International ($15,800). The TSA gets to keep the loot, though Florida Rep. Jeff Miller wants to make the agency give it to United Service Organizations in the future. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Airport Screener Out of Job After Prank

Teased passenger with fake bag of drugs

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Philadelphia • airport security • TSA • airport screener

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

New Record: Kobayashi Scarfs 337 Chicken Wings

In just half an hour

Rand Paul's TSA Scuffle Now Raking in Cash for Dad

Ron Paul urges supporters to contribute to 'End the TSA Money Bomb'

Rand Paul Refuses TSA Patdown, Gets Detained

Ron Paul's son being detained 'indefinitely,' says spokesperson

TSA: We Were Right to Take That Cupcake

...because it was a cupcake in a jar

People Left $409K in Coins at Airport Checkpoints

And the TSA is keeping it

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?

Airport Screener Out of Job After Prank

Teased passenger with fake bag of drugs

Bookmark & Share

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Philadelphia • airport security • TSA • airport screener

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

New Record: Kobayashi Scarfs 337 Chicken Wings

In just half an hour

Rand Paul's TSA Scuffle Now Raking in Cash for Dad

Ron Paul urges supporters to contribute to 'End the TSA Money Bomb'

Rand Paul Refuses TSA Patdown, Gets Detained

Ron Paul's son being detained 'indefinitely,' says spokesperson

TSA: We Were Right to Take That Cupcake

...because it was a cupcake in a jar

People Left $409K in Coins at Airport Checkpoints

And the TSA is keeping it

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?