TSA Security Screeners at JFK missed a straight razor which was almost used to slash a passenger’s throat on the way to Salt Lake City. Merrill Darrell Fackrell is safely in custody thanks to a vigilant fellow passenger. Last week, the screeners barely caught a stowaway cat. Things are heating up already, indicating this year to be an interesting one for holiday travel.
Straight razor at her throat
Utah resident Merrill Darrell Fackrell, 41, was arrested as soon as his flight landed in Salt Lake City, Utah, after trying to slash the throat of his seat neighbor with a straight razor.
He had been occupying a window seat with his un-named victim in the middle and her husband on the aisle. Initially, he acted fairly normal and “engaged in conversation with the woman.”
All went well through most of the flight, until the woman opened up an in-flight flick. “The woman began to watch a movie using headphones.” Fackrell kept talking but he had been mostly talking to himself anyway, so she just ignored it. He apparently didn’t like the way she tuned him out.
The Good Samaritan, I'm told named Rob, you can see sits down as police take 41-year old Merrill Fackrell from Syracuse off the plane. Fackrell has been federally charged in the razor assault.(📸Abraham Neiderhauser) https://t.co/W8U1HUJhcA
— Lauren Steinbrecher (@LaurenSnews) November 24, 2022
“Fackrell then put his hand in front of the screen and told her to pause the movie.” She knew he meant it when she saw the straight razor. To her, it looked like a knife but she wasn’t paying attention to details because he held it against her throat.
Police confirmed later that it was indeed a good old fashioned straight razor with a “a one to two inch blade” just perfect for concealment in a shoe.
“Fackrell allegedly stood up and yelled, ‘She’s going to be okay,’ and ‘no one needs to worry,’” CBS reports. He simply glared at the husband and told him “get the f*** out of here.” He did, straight to the closest flight attendant.
A vigilant passenger
Despite the blade at her throat, the woman “lunged for the aisle.” Fackrell “tried to grab her shoulder and stop her.” That’s when a vigilant fellow passenger stepped in. Perhaps it was an Air Marshall, those guys fly deep cover. Either way, it worked.
“Rob” didn’t know it was a razor the guy was holding when the “passenger seated across the aisle” confronted him. He managed to persuade the maniac to drop the knife.
Fackrell made the right decision not to make things worse and dropped the “object” on the seat. That’s when the other passenger realized it was a viciously deadly straight razor.
#TSA #JFK #Stowaway
TSA Makes Shocking Discovery Inside Checked Bag, Take a LOOK – https://t.co/DFKjfSTVEu via @Shareaholic— Kilgore Trout (@Kilgore73862013) November 26, 2022
He handed it to the flight crew “for safe keeping,” the police report informs. The stalwart citizen then voluntarily “sat next to Fackrell for the duration of the flight.” Hopefully, JetBlue upgraded the couple to the “mint” section for their inconvenience.
As soon as they landed, authorities collected Fackrell and his razor. He’s been charged with “carrying a weapon on an aircraft and assault with a dangerous weapon in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States.” That’s a federal rap. “The case is being investigated by Salt Lake City Police Department and an FBI Task Force officer.”
The TSA released a statement noting “the administration is very concerned about the number of unruly passengers who engage in disruptive behavior during flight.” But apparently not too upset that they missed his weapon of choice. They did mention it though. “We take our responsibility to secure the skies for the traveling public very seriously and are introducing new x-ray technology at more airports to improve our capability to better detect items such as the one used in this incident.” They missed a straight razor but they’re really happy one of those deplorable MAGA type vigilantes were onboard. “We commend the actions of the flight attendants and other passengers on this flight.“
