10 Freaky Moments In Airport Security

A list from Chris T. and Bagbunch.com.

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What do crocodiles, breast milk, pickles, a skeleton, and a camel costume have in common?

Believe it or not, they were all found by amazed airport security in the bags of some unforgettable travelers. Read on to learn the bizarre stories surrounding these incidents and more.


O Brother, Where Art Thou?

An elderly woman was stopped at Munich airport after agents made a gruesome find: a human skeleton in a sealed plastic bag inside her suitcase. No, this old duck wasn't the killer. She just wanted to fulfill the dying wish of her brother who passed away eleven years ago. Grandma was simply taking him to his homeland of Italy for a proper burial. Violating no laws, the woman was allowed to continue her journey, skeleton and all.


That’s My Camel!

At Australia’s Sydney Airport, a baggage handler found a camel costume in a suitcase and, obviously taken with it, wore the suit out onto the tarmac to entertain his fellow baggage crew. The incident might have gone undetected had the traveler not spotted his costume from the airplane window and protested.


Lactation Humiliation

An American mom was unconcerned in 2002 when staff at JFK Airport approached her for a random search. She never imagined that the three bottles of breast milk in her travel bag would cause such a stir. Security agents asked her to drink from each bottle to prove it was nothing dangerous. The woman, concerned that her saliva might spoil the expressed milk for her infant, offered instead to place a drop on each arm to taste, but her offer was rejected, and she was made to drink from each bottle. Her lawyer later commented, "I think the number of Caucasian, lactating mothers who have passed through al Qaeda training camps is negligible!"


Where Ya Headed?

Logan International Airport staff were in for a surprise when they found a severed seal head in the bag of one of their passengers. The man was a biologist who cut off the head of a dead seal he found on his travels. He hoped to keep the specimen for educational purposes, but was refused because he didn't have a permit.


Armed And Extremely Harmless

G.I. Joe may inspire fear in the hearts of cartoon bad guys, but few would accuse the action figures of the same thing. Yet staff at Los Angeles Airport became anxious when they spied a G.I. Joe figurine in British traveler Judy Powell's luggage. The toy, which was a gift for her son, brandished a two-inch plastic rifle. Airport staff are under orders "to confiscate anything that looks like a weapon or a replica," so Joe's scary little gun was removed before boarding.


What A Croc

When staff at Manila airport stopped a random passenger, the man claimed to be carrying live fish in his luggage, but was lying. He was instead carrying three live Siamese crocodiles, which is one way to get a crocodile suitcase, we suppose.


Ice Ice Baby

Plenty of senior citizens carry ice packs to soothe their aches and pains. But while the contents of 66-year-old Sara Weiss' travel bag weren't unique, her reception at San Diego airport certainly was. Sara's bag contained ice packs wrapped in duct tape and filled with clay. These harmless items looked suspicious enough that Sara was hauled away for questioning. It took three hours for the elderly woman to convince the airport she was not a threat to any flight. (I don't blame security agents on this one. Clay can look like explosives, and who puts clay in ice packs, anyway? - C.)


Hello Kitty

Stowaway cat Ginger was an unexpected traveling companion for Mary Martell of New Brunswick. The woman flew two hours to Toronto, and then drove for another hour before realizing her prized pet was stuck in her suitcase. The crafty cat must have snuck in while Mary was packing. Her bag was scanned by airport security, who didn't detect anything out of the ordinary. Thankfully Air Canada allowed clever Ginger to fly home for free in a proper cat carrier.


Touch Me Again

We all know you're not allowed to travel with weapons, but that didn't stop 71-year-old Rafaela Mendez from trying. She was arrested at Tampa International Airport, when security staff found a leather bludgeon in her carry-on luggage. Mendez told authorities that she keeps the weapon "to hit men's hands when they get fresh." (Here's a pic of Rafaela. I can see how she might need that club. - C)


Travel Snacks?

At the Atlanta International Airport, security officers found 30 snakes, a dead bird and pieces of several other birds in the luggage of a traveler from Vietnam via South Korea. The animals were all dead, but screeners took extra precautions because U.S. Fish and Wildlife officers warned that some of the snakes, which were packed inside jars and bottles, could still contain venom. They added that the dead snakes are typically used in traditional Chinese or Asian medicine. The passenger was fined $800 for his illegal cargo.

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