A passenger discovered a loaded gun magazine with a mysterious inscription aboard a Frontier Airlines plane at a Georgia airport, sparking a multi-agency probe.
According to authorities, the traveler aboard the Airbus A320 aircraft at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport found a loaded magazine containing ten hollow-point rounds near seat 7A, around 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 9, the Atlanta Police Department said in a statement on Wednesday, Nov. 12.
The Frontier Airlines flight was at the gate for a return flight to Cincinnati when the magazine marked with the initials “K H” was found, cops said.
Officers coordinated with the TSA, DOA, Frontier Airlines, the Department of Homeland Security, and Atlanta Police K-9 units after the concerning magazine was reported, authorities added.
The aircraft was deplaned and thoroughly searched. TSA also re-screened all passengers aboard, according to police.
No additional items of concern were found, and the flight departed safely by 7:56 p.m., cops said.
The FBI has been notified of the incident.
Frontier Airlines told Fox5 that the loaded magazine belonged to a law enforcement officer who had flown on the same aircraft before the flight out of Atlanta.
“A subsequent investigation confirmed that the ammunition belonged to a law enforcement officer who was on an earlier flight on the same aircraft,” the airline told the outlet in a statement.
“The ammunition and magazine were taken into the custody of the Atlanta Police Department, and the property owner was referred to Atlanta P.D. to retrieve his items.”
An Atlanta police source, however, told the outlet that investigators have not yet confirmed that claim.