At Boston Logan International Airport, TSA officers prevented a passenger from boarding an international flight after discovering four knives in the woman’s knee brace.
Arriving at the checkpoint in a wheelchair, the woman placed her knee brace on the X-ray conveyor belt, and Transportation Security Officer Helder De Pina Cabral, who was the X-ray operator, saw an image that looked a bit suspicious. He asked other officers to conduct additional screening on the brace after noticing knife-like objects on his monitor.
When officers asked the woman what was inside her knee brace, she only laughed. Inspecting the brace, officers discovered four serrated table knives artfully concealed inside the neoprene-style brace.
The knives were confiscated and Massachusetts State Police and the airline were notified. The London, England, resident was not allowed to board her flight.
“This is a good example of what a fine job our officers do,” said Massachusetts Federal Security Director Robert Allison. “The officer staffing the X-ray machine spotted something unusual, and it turned out that he was spot-on. The officer who pulled out the knives showed them to the woman, and she laughed, but I can assure you that trying to artfully conceal any sort of weapon in an effort to get it onto an airplane is no laughing matter.”