Updated

Updated · Transportation Security Administration · Jul 24

Sheriff Returns 5 Stolen Fort Morgan Cannonballs After TSA Flags Bag at Alabama Airport

Updated

Updated · Transportation Security Administration · Jul 24

Sheriff Returns 5 Stolen Fort Morgan Cannonballs After TSA Flags Bag at Alabama Airport

Q: How did a grandmother fail to notice the massive weight of five stolen Civil War cannonballs hidden in her luggage by a child?

She likely did not realize what had been packed because investigators say a juvenile secretly put the cannonballs into his grandmother’s checked bag, and authorities found no sign she knew they were stolen or even there. The reporting does not establish that the grandmother personally handled or closely inspected the items before travel. The cannonballs were wrapped in paper towels and varied in size, from about an inch across to as large as a grapefruit. TSA officer Justin Dupree said the larger ones weighed about as much as a small shot put, but the total added weight may not have stood out if the suitcase was already heavily packed, had wheels, or was moved only short distances. There is also some inconsistency in public accounts about what the passenger initially thought the objects were. One local airport official said she told authorities she believed they came from a roadside stand, while sheriff’s investigators later said she was unaware how they got into the bag and that her 17-year-old grandchild had taken them from a storage area at Fort Morgan. What is clear is that law enforcement traced the cannonballs back to Fort Morgan through identifying paint markings, determined they were inert, and returned them to the historic site. Fort Morgan declined to press charges, and officials have continued reviewing how the artifacts were removed.

3 articles · Updated · Transportation Security Administration · Jul 24

Five stolen Fort Morgan cannonballs were returned by the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office after TSA officers found them wrapped in paper towels inside a passenger’s checked bag at Gulf Shores International Airport.
An X-ray alarm triggered the discovery when officers saw a dense opaque object they initially feared could be a live explosive, prompting calls to a TSA explosives specialist and local police.
The cannonballs were later confirmed inert, but TSA said they still counted as prohibited artillery munitions and could not be transported on the aircraft.
Police determined the relics had been taken from historic Fort Morgan, though authorities said the passenger did not know how they were stolen.
The incident occurred July 18 and was only the second such case since the airport opened in May 2025, underscoring TSA warnings against bringing weapons or replicas to airports.