Suburban man charged after running with gun into O’Hare terminal area, police say​on April 16, 2025 at 6:38 pm

CHICAGO (WLS) — A west suburban man was charged for allegedly running into the terminal area at a Chicago airport on Tuesday, police said.

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The incident happened at Chicago O’Hare International Airport around 12:20 p.m., a Transportation Security Administration spokesperson said.

Chicago police identified the suspect as Besnik Ismajlaj, 53, of St. Charles.

Ismajlaj allegedly took his bag into the Terminal 1 security checkpoint for screening, when TSA found a firearm inside his bag.

Per TSA policy, agents kept the bag with the firearm inside the X-ray tunnel and contacted Chicago police.

But before CPD arrived, Ismajlaj allegedly reached inside of the machine and grabbed the bag before heading into the terminal area.

Officials eventually found Ismajlaj, and CPD took him into custody just before 1 p.m.

Ismajlaj was charged with one count of carrying a concealed firearm at the airport, a misdemeanor, according to Chicago police.

No injuries were reported.

He is due in court on June 9.

The video in the player above is from a previous report.

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