Following at least five security lapses in 30 days at Newark Airport — starting with the bizarre case of a dead dog in a cardboard box — an airport checkpoint was closed for 20 minutes this week after another breach.
An improperly screened passenger was allowed to enter a secure area of the airport in Terminal B at 2:10 p.m. Monday, the Transportation Security Administration said today. The passenger was found and rescreened.
Following at least five security lapses in 30 days at Newark Airport — starting with the bizarre case of a dead dog in a cardboard box — an airport checkpoint was closed for 20 minutes this week after another breach.
An improperly screened passenger was allowed to enter a secure area of the airport in Terminal B at 2:10 p.m. Monday, the Transportation Security Administration said today.
The passenger was found and rescreened.
"A passenger passed through the B-1 security checkpoint at Newark Liberty International Airport without completing the screening process," the TSA said today in a statement, released following an inquiry by The Star-Ledger.
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"Out of an abundance of caution, TSA temporarily closed the checkpoint," the agency said. "TSA and law enforcement worked to locate the passenger, who returned to the checkpoint and was screened with negative findings."
TSA officials said they are reviewing the incident and "will take appropriate action, as necessary."
Between Jan. 4, when a dead dog taken to a security checkpoint by its owner was loaded onto a Continental Airlines jet without being screened for bombs or disease, and Feb. 3, when two people walked off despite a glitch that froze the monitor on a full-body scanner, there were at least five security lapses at the airport.
In one, a knife in a carry-on bag got past TSA agents in Terminal C.
A source previously told The Star-Ledger there were eight lapses during that time, but TSA officials disputed three, saying they were minor procedural incidents.
The source, who requested anonymity because agency employees are prohibited from disclosing security breaches, said one breach every two months is more the norm.
The TSA’s area director, Jim Blair, visited the airport this month to discuss improving security, but a TSA spokeswoman insisted the trip was unrelated to the lapses.
One of the planes commandeered by terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001, left from the airport.
