Republican US congresswoman Victoria Spartz has been charged with a weapons violation after she brought a gun to the Dulles international airport in Virginia on Friday, according to local authorities.
Spartz, a Republican representing Indiana’s fifth congressional district, was traveling to Europe for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary Assembly when she was stopped and cited for carrying a pistol in her carry-on bag, Axios reported.
It is illegal for passengers to have guns in their carry-on luggage, though they can be transported if checked. A metropolitan Washington airports authority spokesperson told local affiliate WISH TV that Spartz was charged in connection with the gun found in her bag and received a summons to appear in a Virginia court.
In a statement to Axios, a representative for the Transportation Security Agency added that officers “detected a .380 caliber firearm during passenger security screening”. Officials confirmed that the handgun was not loaded.
A representative for Spartz did not respond to the Guardian’s request for comment but confirmed in a statement to the Washington Post that the congresswoman’s citation occurred.
“Last Friday, Spartz accidentally carried an empty handgun in her suitcase with no magazine or bullets, which she did not realize was in the pocket of her suitcase, while going through security at Dulles airport,” the statement read.
Spartz, who has served since 2021, garnered interest for voting “present” – rather than yes – multiple times during the contentious, lengthy House speaker election last year that was won by her fellow Republican Kevin McCarthy. McCarthy ended up being ousted from the speakership in October, becoming the first to ever be removed from the role.
Spartz later declared she would not run for a third term but reversed her decision. She won her Republican primary and is favored to triumph in the November general election.
Spartz is not the only Republican to be cited for carrying a firearm in relatively recent times.
Former far-right Republican congressman Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina received a citation in 2022 after he brought a loaded gun through a security checkpoint at the Charlotte Douglas international airport.
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Cawthorn later pleaded guilty to a third-degree misdemeanor charge of possession of a dangerous weapon on city property, CNN reported.
A year before that, Cawthorn brought an unloaded handgun and a loaded magazine in his carry-on bag while traveling through the Asheville regional airport. Cawthorn’s gun was returned to him by airport officials after his flight, CNN reported.
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