Police Chief Petrilli admits mistake: He brought loaded weapon to Bloomington Airport

Normal Police Chief Steve Petrilli said he wanted to turn a mistake into a teaching moment for his department.

Petrilli admitted that he had a loaded handgun in a bag during pre-entry security screening at Central Illinois Regional Airport in Bloomington.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) confirmed that its officers discovered a firearm in a passenger's carry-on baggage during routine X-ray screening at around 5:30 a.m. Sunday. The TSA said a McLean County Sheriff's deputy came to the inspection and confiscated the loaded 9mm Glock.

“When you make a mistake, you have to take responsibility for it,” Petrilli said Thursday morning during a meeting with reporters at the police station. He said his heart sank when he realized the gun was in his pocket.

Petrilli said he was “very concerned about it” over the weekend and notified police department officials.

“Take this as a lesson so this doesn't happen to you. When you travel, set up a system, which is what I will do,” he said. “I will never use my work bag as a travel bag again.”

Petrilli said a TSA agent told him Thursday morning that he would receive a warning and possibly lose his pre-screening privileges.

A TSA spokesman said the penalty for bringing a firearm to a checkpoint could be up to $15,000, depending on the circumstances, and the checkpoint authorization could be revoked for at least five years.

Petrilli, who has been Normal's police chief since 2022, has been with the police force for 25 years. He said the trip was not police-related.

Petrilli said officials gave him the choice of keeping the gun at the airport or taking it to his car. He said the gun was kept at the airport until he returned.

“Kudos to the TSA for taking appropriate action,” Petrilli said.

According to the TSA, passengers are allowed to carry a firearm in checked baggage as long as it is unloaded, packed separately from ammunition in a locked hard-shell case, and declared at the airline check-in counter.

The TSA told WGLT that this is the first incident in which a weapon has been confiscated at Central Illinois Regional Airport since at least 2022.