Flights Delayed
Hundreds of bullet primers make it through airport security
An American Airlines flight from Boston to Miami landed at Miami International Airport about 11:30 am on Tuesday, and as the baggage was unloaded, a handler grabbed a black roll-on and placed it on the ground when "something shoots out of it" FBI spokesman Special Agent Michael Leverock said.
The bag belonged to a 37-year-old man who was arrested after bullet primers ignited in his bag as it was unloaded on the tarmac. The Jamaica-bound traveler, a naturalized United States citizen whose name wasn't released, was charged with traveling in interstate commerce without a license to carry ammunition.
A piece of a primer hit the handler's boot, and part of the bag appeared singed, Leverock said. A bullet primer is the back end of a bullet that provides the spark to ignite the gunpowder.
"It's the spark plug of a bullet," Leverock said. "He had a bag of several hundred of them. When one ignites, there's going to be sympathetic ignition of them, and they all go off."
Fire Rescue personnel, a bomb squad, and K-9 dogs responded and searched other luggage on the plane for anything suspicious. The incident did not appear to be connected to terrorism, Leverock said.
Four flights were delayed due to the investigation, airport spokesman Marc Henderson said.
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