Delta worker accused of smuggling guns on Atlanta flight

ATLANTA — The FBI is investigating allegations that a Delta Airlines employee conspired with a former worker to smuggle aboard a flight loaded guns that were later sold illegally on the street.

Not one, not two, but eighteen guns on board.

Two men are accused of working together to get a total of 18 firearms past the Transportation Security Administration in a Dec. 10 incident.

An FBI affidavit states the guns were smuggled in a carry-on bag on a flight from Atlanta to John F. Kennedy Airport in New York. Seven of the weapons were loaded.

It appears to be a plot that unraveled when, according to the FBI affidavit, an undercover New York officer bought a total of 129 guns, all stolen or illegally purchased in Georgia. The seller is listed as former Delta employee Mark Henry.

Henry is the one accused of transporting the guns on a Dec. 10 flight from Atlanta to New York.

source: www.usatoday.com...

What the heck are we doing? We don't seem to be on top of anything these days.

The affidavit alleges that Eugene Harvey, a current Delta baggage handler at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, bypassed security with the carry-on bag.

The passenger, Mark Henry, was flying on a discounted buddy pass with those 18 guns in tow.

The two men faces charges that include trafficking, aiding and abetting, criminal sale of firearms and criminal possession.

Hope they go straight to prison, do not pass go, do not collect $200.

Wow, CNN reporting that Mark Henry made 20 flights on Delta, carrying hundreds of guns, over a relatively short period of time.
Good Lord.

a reply to: ladyinwaiting


OP you ask what they are doing.........The cops busted these guys and did a good job. This is what they are doing.

Maybe we should have a law against bringing guns aboard commercial airlines?? Wait....we DO HAVE A LAW FOR THAT ALREADY. And, someone didn't follow that law? Amazing. That means, criminals, by their nature, do not follow the law? Nah, can't be. It's a law about guns, it is sacred. Think of the children.... < sarc off >

Sorry, I couldn't help myself. This is just the most recent example of how making a law against handling/transporting/etc... guns will not be followed by the criminal element....especially when there is a promise of big $$$ involved. Granted, the law in place did work, and I do not dispute that or the fact that the law is in place (which is a good thing). Just that here is a case where no new law is required....the one on the books is sufficient.

I, personally, am glad they snagged these guys. In addition, I hope, if found guilty, they pay a premium price for their actions.

a reply to: SubTruth

Right. But the fact that they were able to get these loaded guns aboard the plane, period, troubles me greatly, even despite the fact that one of them was an employee.

a reply to: ladyinwaiting

They were airport employees. That's always the weak link, because they don't get screened. It's too difficult with the number of times they go from secure to non-secure and back again, and with the passenger lines for screening.

Not knowing the distance but some sort of logic surely should of said that you probably could have had them land shipped as fast and not as expensive as flying them there personally, stick them in a container full of metal car parts and i doubt anyone would of gone over a large box of heavy metal parts or even if bored drive them to the destination if the fuel costs are good enough

a reply to: Zaphod58

From May -- December 2014, they made 43 trips carrying hundreds of guns which were sold to Undercover LE officers in Brooklyn. DA said they could have just as easily have been bombs.

This points to airport security, and the hiring of airport employees. And 43 times? It boggles the mind how they got away with this time after time.

a reply to: ladyinwaiting

It has nothing to do with security. Employees have badges that allow access through non-public secure doors. They don't go through security.

It doesn't matter if its an airport, or anywhere else. Employees are the weak point. Throw enough money at someone and they WILL do something along these lines.

As for hiring at the airport, everyone goes through a background check, but its pretty much a basic check into criminal records.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Actually, I understand all that, and yex, it has everything to do with security. It's not working. Obviously.

a reply to: ladyinwaiting

You CAN'T screen employees. So the best they can do is a background check. 98% of employees are going to be trustworthy and never even sneak a sandwhich through. But no matter how good your security is an employee will ALWAYS be able to do something. There is no such thing as 100% secure.

a reply to: Maxatoria

Seriously. Or just put them in a trunk of a car and drive them. Guess they thought it was simpler to get past the NSA.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: ladyinwaiting

You CAN'T screen employees. So the best they can do is a background check. 98% of employees are going to be trustworthy and never even sneak a sandwhich through. But no matter how good your security is an employee will ALWAYS be able to do something. There is no such thing as 100% secure.

Man! Alert! This is what I'm saying! We trained pilots to fly commercial airliners into the WTC, and now we've got criminals working and doing business in our airports without screenings when they travel.

*And of course you can "screen" employees. If you make some changes. I mean, I can't take a hair dryer, but they can take serious weaponry. What's wrong with the picture?

a reply to: ladyinwaiting

There are a thousand or more employees at large airports that have business in the secure area. You'd have to add at minimum several hundred screeners just to deal with them.

This system has worked for forty years. The number of events that are on a level of this, aren't even a statistical blip. The number of events that led to death or injury can be counted on one hand, leaving fingers left.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Once, maybe. But forty-three times? I think it rather speaks for itself. It only takes one time, and one bomb.
Adjustments are in order.

a reply to: ladyinwaiting

And in forty years, I can think of ONCE when a weapon was snuck through and used on a plane. An airline employee that was fired snuck a gun onto the flight his boss was on and executed the flight crew.

Even taking all 43 incidents separately, this isn't even a blip, when you consider how many flights occur a day, let alone in a year.

So everyone loses their constitutional rights as soon as they enter an airport and two regular delta employees were able to smuggle hundreds of firearms over the course of however long?

It wasn't even the airport security that caught them but the FBI.

Fail.

a reply to: OrphanApology

They don't go through screening as employees so how was airport security supposed to catch them?

a reply to: OrphanApology

The paths that regular civilians and airport employees take to get inside an airport are totally different. Passengers will go through the whole security screening ordeal. For employees, they basically just ride a bus from the employee parking lot, swipe their employee card a couple times, and they're in. There's no metal detectors or screening comparable to passengers.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Why don't they?

That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. Employees have far more access to planes than civilians do who are just travelling.

Employees of companies are responsible for quite a bit of theft and bad actions, most companies realize this. I do not understand. If they are trying to prevent "terrorism" and all that jazz why are employees are not screened as well. Talk about stupid.

Either way, fail. Constitutional rights down the toilet, increased costs, and difficulty travelling for joke security.