Mark Muffley was arrested at Lehigh Valley International Airport in Pennsylvania for attempting to pack an explosive device in his checked baggage.
An explosive was discovered in a checked suitcase at Lehigh Valley International Airport according to federal investigators.
Muffley was apprehended immediately after the device was discovered during a routine luggage search.
Mark Muffley of Lansford Pennsylvania was charged with possessing an explosive in an airport and possessing attempting to place or attempting to place an explosive or incendiary device aboard an aircraft at Lehigh Valley International Airport on Monday according to an affidavit.
Who Is Mark Muffley? Was He Arrested With An Explosive Device To A Pennsylvania Airport?
Muffley was charged with attempting to board an aircraft while carrying an explosive or incendiary device. He had most likely hidden the device in his checked luggage in order to avoid detection by airport security. It’s unclear what motivated Muffley or where he intended to go.
However, while the TSA was screening the luggage an alarm indicated the presence of potentially hazardous materials.
The TSA then contacted the Lehigh Northampton Airport Authority Police Department and contacted the FBI and other special agents to investigate the luggage’s contents.
Officials said the black and flash powder “are sensitive to ignite from heat and friction. They constituted a considerable criminal complaint stating “danger to the aircraft and passengers.
SA Jared Witmier has over 19 years of experience and has been a certified public safety bomb technician for over three years according to the affidavit.
Witmier x-rayed the circular compound buried in the luggage lining and discovered a granular form of powder secreted beneath the wax paper of the plastic wrap. The granular powder is thought to be a combination of flash powder and black granular both of which are commonly used in commercial pyrotechnics.
Where Is Mark Muffley Now? Arrest And Chargers
On Monday, Feb. 27 the Transportation Safety Administration requested assistance from the FBI after discovering what appeared to be explosives in luggage checked in by Muffley on Flight 201 destined for Orlando Sanford International Airport in Florida.
Muffley was paged via LVI’s public address system at 11:40 a.m. after TSA spotted the device and asked him to go to the airport’s security desk. Five minutes later he was caught by surveillance cameras exiting the airport at the lower-level exit.
The investigation necessitated the evacuation of the airport’s immediate vicinity. Muffley was apprehended by the FBI at his home on Monday night. He is still detained.
On Thursday at 1:30 p.m., a hearing to determine Muffley’s detention bail and the probable cause will be held in Allentown with Muffley participating via video conference.
The luggage contained a bottle of butane a lighter a pipe covered in white powder a cordless drill and two GFCI outlets bound with black tape according to the affidavit.
A “fast fuse” and a “hobby fuse” were also discovered in the facility by the special agent. The powder inside the device according to the affidavit is prone to igniting due to heat and friction posing a serious risk to the aircraft and passengers.
According to FBI and local law enforcement bomb specialists, the chemical retrieved was a live explosive device.