American Idol winner Scott McCreery has apologized after he was caught carrying a loaded gun through Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina last week.
The country singer, 23, went through a security X-ray checkpoint in his hometown’s airport on July 13 when the weapon was spotted by a Transportation Security Administration employee. He was issued a citation for a misdemeanor violation.
“I have been a concealed carry permit holder for awhile now after being robbed at gunpoint in 2014, and I take gun safety very seriously,” McCreery said in a statement to Us Weekly on Saturday, July 22. “While in between tour dates last week, I went to go target shooting with a friend a few days before an early flight out of my hometown Raleigh-Durham airport. Unfortunately, I did not realize that I left my pistol in my backpack until the TSA found it during the security X-ray screening and rightly confiscated it.”
“I had my concealed carry permit on me so once they had checked everything out, they then released me to catch the next available flight,” he added. “Great to know our airport security force is on the job. I have learned a lesson that I won’t forget.”
A Wake Country District Attorney told local Raleigh station WRAL that because he has a carry conceal permit, McCreery will likely receive a letter from the Federal Aviation Administration, along with a $1,500 fine. Once he pays the fine, the charges will likely be dropped.
As Us Weekly reported in 2014, the season 10 American Idol champ was held at gunpoint in an apartment complex near North Carolina’s State University’s campus in Raleigh, where McCreery was attending college.
Police confirmed that three armed gunmen broke into the home and stole items from the victims, including their wallets, cash and electronics.
McCreery spoke out about the robbery in 2014, tweeting, “It was definitely a very scary night.”
