Handgun Lands Would-Be Flier In Trouble
By Chris Echegaray, Tampa Tribune, Fla.
Aug. 2–TAMPA — Authorities said a Spring Hill woman was packing more than clothes when she was arrested Wednesday at Tampa International Airport and charged with having a gun in her carry-on luggage.
Susan Mericle True, 57, was carrying a .38-caliber Smith & Wesson handgun, with five bullets, holstered in her Nine West purse, which was inside a black carry-on bag, according to an airport police report.
True, of 6098 Shannon Ave., Spring Hill, was arrested at 6:03 a.m. after airport security saw the gun during a screening. The bag was left inside the X-ray machine until police arrived to Airside F security checkpoint, TIA spokeswoman Brenda Geoghagan said.
True, who was charged with one count of carrying a concealed firearm, was being held Wednesday at Orient Road Jail with bail set at $2,000.
“She has a permit, but it expired,” Geoghagan said. Even if the permit hadn’t expired, True could not bring the gun into the airport, she said.
True told authorities she was a retired American Airlines flight attendant, according to the report, and that she had forgotten to remove the gun and place it in her vehicle.
She told authorities she had the gun for 20 years and that it had belonged to her father. She produced a Florida concealed weapon/firearm license that expired May 2.
True’s American Airline flight was heading to the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, airport, according to the report.
Editor Howard Altman contributed to this report. Reporter Chris Echegaray can be reached at (813) 259-7920 or cechegaray @tampatrib.com.
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