Atlanta's airport disclosed Wednesday that it is boosting security following allegations that two men with ties to Delta Air Lines smuggled more than 130 firearms from Georgia to New York over the course of eight months last year.
A spokesman for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport said it has expanded “random inspections” and increased its police presence. Six new officers recently started work at the airport, though their positions were budgeted before last month’s gun-smuggling bust, said airport spokesman Reese McCranie.
“We are collaborating with the [Transportation Security Administration] and other federal agencies on a daily basis to enhance our security posture, and we plan to announce further changes soon,” McCranie said in an email.
Revelations about the gun-smuggling investigation in Atlanta have drawn sharp reactions from U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer of New York and Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson. At a news conference Wednesday, Schumer called on the Transportation Security Administration to require airports nationwide to physically screen airline and airport employees before they enter secured areas.
“When guns, drugs, and even explosives are as easy to carry on board a plane as a neck pillow, then we have to seriously — and immediately — overhaul our airport security practices,” Schumer said in a prepared statement. “In this day and age of terrorism, rampant drug dealing and gun smuggling, we just can’t be too careful.”
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson’s office disclosed this week that he is planning to review security at Atlanta’s airport during a visit Thursday.
“Secretary Johnson shares the concerns raised by Brooklyn District Attorney Thompson and Senator Schumer and DHS is rigorously analyzing the findings from this investigation,” DHS spokeswoman Marsha Catron said in a prepared statement Wednesday.
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