Police have identified a convicted felon as the man who accidentally discharged his firearm at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Saturday.
The suspect was identified as Kenny Wells, 42. A warrant is out for his arrest on charges of carrying a concealed weapon at an airport, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and reckless conduct, authorities said.
Around 1:30 p.m on Saturday Wells accidentally discharged the gun at the main checkpoint when x-ray detected a prohibited weapon.
“During the screening process, a prohibited item was detected inside of his property, which was subsequently flagged for a secondary search. During that secondary search, the passenger lunged into his property, grabbing a firearm that was located inside, which ultimately discharged,” Robert Spinden, the federal security director at the Transportation Security Administration, said during a news conference, according to The Hill. “The passenger then fled the area, running out of the airport exit.”
Flights were temporarily grounded amid the panic and chaos that ensued. Three people sustained minor injuries, a TSA spokesperson said. Two people reported shortness of breath and another fell in the airport’s atrium.
Normal operations at the airport resumed about two hours after the incident.
