![“[We’re] letting people know that, don't try to bring these types of items in this particular way, because we're going to find them,” Dan Velez said.](https://media.wwltv.com/assets/WWL/images/2d6194fd-b3db-439b-a371-590a7ffc17fb/2d6194fd-b3db-439b-a371-590a7ffc17fb_1920x1080.jpg)
NEW ORLEANS — TSA agents around the country come across hundreds of prohibited items. Last year, there was a very spicy find at Armstrong Airport. So spicy, that it was added to the agency’s list of the best catches of 2023.
With travelers trying to take home a taste of Louisiana, it’s normal for TSA agents to spot some spices in a carry-on.
“It’s not uncommon to find items specific to that region,” TSA Spokesperson, Dan Velez said. “In New Orleans, it’s any kind of Cajun seasoning.”
But what one agent found inside a container of pro boil was abnormal.
“I do get the photos of these weird things. It’s pretty eye-opening, and I have to find the backstory,” Velez said.
In October, agents at MSY found one pound of crystal meth stashed in a bottle of the beloved Cajun seasoning.
“I think it’s an ingenious hiding spot,” One traveler said. “Something that no one would expect.”
Given its popularity, one traveler to New Orleans says it definitely isn’t the first place she would look.
“It makes you think, hmm, is this concealing something else? I’ll have a more keen eye,” she said.
That is just one of hundreds of thousands of items airports recover.
“We’re seeing all kinds of weird things,” Velez said.
Out of those weird things, TSA narrowed it down to their top ten best catches of 2023. The hidden crystal meth found at MSY rings in at number seven.
“What we're doing is we're trying to highlight items that are really, really unique and kind of weird,” Velez said.
Why do they publish their top ten catches each year? To remind travelers that TSA is on it.
“[We’re] letting people know that, don't try to bring these types of items in this particular way, because we're going to find them,” Velez said.
TSA's full top 10 list:
- Inert IED hidden in an energy drink can - Tulsa International Airport
- Marijuana in a diaper - LaGuardia Airport
- IED in a CO2 cartridge - Sacramento International Airport
- Firearm and 163 rounds of ammo - New Orleans International Airport
- Knife hidden inside a prosthetic leg - Anchorage Airport
- 35mm projectile bomb - Charlotte Douglas International Airport
- Bag of meth inside crawfish boil seasoning - New Orleans International Airport
- Knife stuffed in a loaf of keto bread - Seattle-Tacoma International Airport
- Replica rockets in checked luggage - Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport
- Naruto throwing knives in a carry-on bag - Boston Logan International Airport
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.