TSA spilled grandfather’s ashes on the floor, passenger says
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer Stephen Candia helps a patron pass though a security check. Several current and former TSA agents at LAX have been indicted for allegedly taking bribes to allow drug shipments through security.
An Indiana man is accusing the Transportation Security Administration of spilling his grandfather's ashes–and then laughing about it. John Gross said he was trying to go through security at Orlando International Airport, and he brought the remains of his grandfather in his carry-on luggage. He said he put the ashes in a jar and labeled them as human remains, WTVR reported.
But Gross was shocked to see the TSA agent open the jar and sift through the ashes with her finger. It was then that she accidentally spilled about a third of the remains, RTV reported.
"She didn't apologize. She started laughing," Gross told RTV. "I was on my hands and knees picking up bone fragments. I couldn't pick up all, everything that was lost. I mean, there was a long line behind me."
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He is now demanding an apology. It appears that Gross may be able to get the agent fired, if his story turns out to be true, as the TSA's own website states that "under no circumstances" can an officer open a container of human remains.
The TSA is now launching an internal investigation into the allegations, FOX News reported. However, Gross has not yet filed a formal complaint with the agency. The investigation may also be difficult because that checkpoint did not have a video camera. "We have been conducting an internal review and have not been able to draw the same conclusions," a TSA spokesman told FOX.