The president of the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce was arrested Wednesday after authorities said he carried a firearm into an unauthorized area of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
David Wilson Connell was taken into custody at 11:02 a.m. and transported to the Clayton County Jail. His attorney, Michael Maloof, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that bond was set and that Connell was expected to be released later in the day.
Connell was released on bond Wednesday evening, Channel 2 Action News reported.
A handgun was discovered in a briefcase Connell was carrying Wednesday morning, according to a Transportation Safety Administration spokesman.
"The .380 [caliber firearm] was discovered about 7:40 this morning," TSA spokesman Jon Allen said in an email to Channel 2. "There was one clip with six rounds [none chambered] in the firearm and another clip with six rounds in the bag."
The Cobb Chamber said Connell had arrived at the airport to board a flight for a business trip.
He was stopped by TSA agents "regarding an item in his carry-on briefcase," chamber spokeswoman Amy Selby said in a emailed statement to the AJC. "At that time he was not allowed to board his intended flight."
Selby said Connell had "inadvertently taken the wrong briefcase to the airport." She declined to disclose details of the trip and referred other questions to Connell's lawyer.
Maloof,
who said Connell flies 10 to 15 times a year, called the incident “a pure accident.”
“I’ve had this happen to other friends of mine that were not aware that a suitcase or briefcase contained a firearm,” Maloof told the AJC. “This gentleman has never been arrested before.”
Connell became president of the 5,400-member Cobb chamber in November 2010. He previously served as the region executive for Georgia Power’s Metro West Region and has held senior positions at Georgia Power’s parent company, Southern Co.
Connell was in the news last year after he collapsed during a meeting of the Marietta Redevelopment Authority. At the time, his assistant said the incident was likely caused by dehydration.
Allen, the TSA spokesman, said it was the 27th firearm incident at a Hartsfield-Jackson checkpoint so far this year.
-- Staff writer Janel Davis contributed to this report.
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