Ever since 9/11, security measures at airports have increased significantly. Most people merely want to get from one destination to another and check the TSA regulations just to find out how big their shampoo bottles can be in the carry-on suitcase. When Yongda Huang Harris tried to board a flight at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) with a suitcase full of weapons, he definitely stood out from the other passengers.

Yongda Huang Harris, a resident of Boston, traveled from Japan to South Korea before arriving at LAX. Harris is currently a school teacher in Japan and was headed home to Boston when the incident at LAX occurred. According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers, Harris was traveling with a smoke grenade, a biohazard suit, body bags, handcuffs, leg irons, baton, gas mask, a various assortment of knives, duct tape, and billy clubs. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers also noticed that Harris was wearing flame-retardant pants and a bulletproof vest.

Officials at Kansai International Airport in Japan stated that none of the hazardous materials reported by U.S. Customs and Border Protection were found when Harris left Japan. Harris was screened at the airport in Incheon, South Korea, but he was still able to board the plane with the smoke grenade in one of his checked bags.

It is illegal to transport a smoke grenade on a passenger aircraft since it is considered a hazard under the United Nations explosives shipping classification system. The other items Harris was carrying can be checked on airplanes as long as they are declared when entering the United States.

Out of all the items Harris possessed, he only declared that he was bringing a knife into the country on his customs list. Harris was taken into custody on October 5, 2012.  Harris has yet to disclose why he chose to carry all of those weapons or what he intended to do with them. Rather than speak with law enforcement, Harris followed his lawyer’s advice by invoking his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent.

During an October 12, 2012 court appearance, Harris was charged with one count of transporting hazardous materials because he was carrying the smoke grenade. The charge has a maximum five-year prison sentence. Steven Seiden, Harris’s weapons lawyer, requested that Harris be released from police custody until the trial starts. Seiden contested any notions that Harris would flee. Harris has no criminal record and only returned to the United States to attend his father’s funeral.

Things started to look worse for Harris when the prosecutor presented material found on his computer. Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Mills stated that authorities obtained pornography depicting sexual violence crimes against young girls and material showing how to hunt and trap people. Finding the material on the computer was particularly troubling considering that Harris was a junior high school teacher in Japan who had access to children on a regular basis.

Seiden stated that in spite of the materials found on Harris’s computer, he did not intend to harm anyone. Seiden claimed that Harris was previously attacked in Boston and carried the weapons in case he needed to protect himself from a future attack. Seiden informed the court that Harris also doesn’t have any psychological issues that would indicate he poses a danger to others.

Federal Magistrate Judge Paul Abrams decided that Harris posed a flight risk and ordered him to remain in custody. The next hearing is scheduled for October 23, 2012.

When you are charged with committing a crime, retaining a highly qualified and diligent lawyer will have a substantial impact on the final outcome of the case. If you are facing criminal charges, schedule a consultation with a criminal defense lawyer.