Posted on 11/01/2007 10:20:41 AM PDT by Sir Gawain
Two Arrested At Atlanta Airport With Hidden Knives, Razor Blades
POSTED: 6:46 am EDT November 1, 2007 UPDATED: 12:01 pm EDT November 1, 2007
ATLANTA -- Authorities say they have ruled out terrorism in an incident in which two men tried to sneak knives and other weapons onto a flight from Atlanta to New York.
One of the men even made it through security and onto the Delta Air Lines flight. Both have been charged with state violations of carrying concealed weapons, according to an Atlanta police report.
Authorities surrounded 60-year-old Chhaganbhai Patel at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on October 25 after he was found with a number of knives including a martial arts-style knife.
Atlanta police Lt. Jim Corlino said the knife was a large Chinese-style fighting knife with blades that opened on both ends.
Authorities also found 20 small knives wrapped in tin foil. And upon searching Patel's bag three more times, they found razor blades hidden in the battery compartment of a toy car.
Shakarabhai Patel, 64, who was traveling with Chhaganbhai Patel had already made it through security and onto the flight, which was bound for New York and then to India. Officials did not immediately indicate the relationship between the two men.
The plane was brought back to the gate and police said they found a box cutter and $5,000 cash in the second man's bag.
They have been charged with weapons charges. Both men remain in jail while police investigate.
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ATLANTA (AP) — A man with a box cutter in his luggage got through airport security, and was discovered only after screeners stopped a companion who was carrying knives, authorities said. Terrorism was ruled out but both were arrested on state weapons charges.
Authorities said Chhaganbhai Patel, 60, was stopped at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Oct. 25 after he was found with a number of knives including a martial arts-style knife.
Shakarabhai Patel, 64, who was traveling with him, had already made it through security and onto the Delta Air Lines jet, which was bound for New York and then to India, authorities said. The plane was brought back to the gate and police said a box cutter and $5,000 cash were found in the second man's bag.
Both have been charged with state violations of carrying concealed weapons, according to an Atlanta police report.
FBI spokesman Stephen Emmett said Thursday that federal agents interviewed the two men through an interpreter and determined the incident was not terrorism-related. No federal charges were brought. He declined to explain why the men had the knives.
Atlanta police Lt. Jim Corlino told Atlanta television station WAGA that the way the knives were packed "was an intentional concealment."
"The (martial arts) knife was a large, Chinese-style fighting knife," Corlino said. Authorities said they also found 20 small knives wrapped in tin foil and razor blades hidden in the battery compartment of a toy car. The police report said the man indicated he wrapped the knives to keep them from cutting his clothes.
Jon Allen, spokesman for the Transportation Security Administration, said the arrests illustrate the agency's practice of having multiple layers of security.
"One of those layers is professionally trained officers who through their questioning identified the travel companion," Allen said. "The travel companion was removed from the flight and rescreened and that's when that box cutter was identified."
Delta spokeswoman Betsy Talton said the airline cooperated fully with authorities.
It was not immediately clear if the men had lawyers; police did not return calls seeking more details.
What does it take to be “terrorism-related” exactly, I wonder?
If the box cutters had been discovered on 09/11, technically it would not have been terror related either. And yet, the results were ....
Riiiiight. Completely skipping over the fact that one of them made it all the way THROUGH their "multiple layers of security."
Voting for a liberal DemocRAT, for one!
Well, thank goodness that the man was not traveling alone, because the first 'layer' completely missed the box cutter the first time around!! SHEESH!
TSA #1: Holy Smokes! Joe! Get over here! This guy is trying to on this plane with a bunch of knives!
TSA #2: Jeez! It's good you found them! Who is this guy?
TSA #1: He says his name is Chhaganbhai Patel.
TSA #2: Well, I can tell you one thing -- and you know what I'm gonna say ...
Both: It's not terror-related!
...except the last one
‘Shakarabhai Patel, 64, who was traveling with Chhaganbhai Patel had already made it through security and onto the flight, which was bound for New York and then to India. Officials did not immediately indicate the relationship between the two men.’
Unusual surnames not withstanding, huh?
(eyes rolling)
Oh yeah, nothing here that would cause TSA to think terrorism. Lots of cash. Weapons. International flight to India. Nope, nothing weird here.
Now if they had been carrying nail clippers and breast milk, THAT would have been strip search time. /unfotunately no sarc
“Mr. Patel, what kind of motel you gents run in New York that you need to pack all them razor blades?”
Patel isn’t that unusual these days. In fact, thousands of hotels in the United States are owned by various branches of the Patel family. It’s apparently a fairly common Indian family name.
}:-)4
“determined the incident was not terrorism-related.”
I bet this is based upon a conclusion that the perps are not Muslim. Probably the perps were afraid that someone else would try to hijack the plane, and they wanted to be prepared.
Pakastanis?
Yes, but Chhaganbhai...
I wonder what sound you ascribe to the second “h?”
I don't know...if these two people were named John Smith and Joe Smith, would you automatically assume they were related? It's about the same equivalent here, really.
when they are actually used on a flight crew member.
Patel isn’t that unusual these days. In fact, thousands of hotels in the United States are owned by various branches of the Patel family. It’s apparently a fairly common Indian family name.
Somehow I doubt they fly coach....
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