Who had turtles in bras on their 2025 bingo card?
The Transportation Security Administration has seen almost everything. But each year, a handful of discoveries surpass the usual oversized razors and shampoo bottles and earn a place in TSA lore.
This week, the agency launched his list one of the ten most unusual items discovered at airport security checkpoints in 2025, and while this year’s list may be a little more benign than some infamous lists of the past, it still offers plenty of head-shaking moments.
Over the years, some… shall we say… unusual items have been confiscated at TSA security checkpoints. Remember in 2022 when a gun was found inside a raw chicken at Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport (FLL)? Well, it happened. And you can read about it here.
A chaotic year at Checkpoint
Fairly or unfairly, the TSA bore much of the public’s frustration about travel in 2025. The year brought wild weather, record passenger volumes, the nationwide rollout of REAL ID in May and a 43-day government shutdown that throttled flights at some of the country’s busiest airports and left many TSA officers working without pay for weeks.
The numbers alone explain why strange things sometimes get introduced into the X-ray tunnel. In 2025, the TSA screened 906.7 million passengers, averaging about 2.48 million travelers per day. Eight of the ten busiest travel days in U.S. history occurred in 2025, including a record 3.1 million passengers screened on Sunday, Nov. 30, the day after Thanksgiving.
Throughout the year, agents inspected 2.1 billion carry-on bags and 480 million checked bags, confiscating more than one million prohibited items, including 6,669 firearms.
Needless to say, with that sheer volume of bags passing through TSA’s hands every day, there are bound to be outlandish items discovered from time to time. I’m sure the TSA agents reading this right now are laughing to themselves and saying under their breath, “You have NO idea, man. No idea.”
Oh, the stories they could tell.
TSA, but make it internet friendly
While it may seem strange for a federal security agency to make jokes about confiscated contraband, the TSA has turned to humor as a way to connect with travelers. His social media feeds are equal parts public service announcements and dad joke master classes, with puns that seem suspiciously well-crafted.
This year’s list of unusual finds continues that tradition. Compared to previous years, most of the items were relatively harmless, although “relatively” works a lot in that phrase.
So, without further ado, here’s the official countdown.
The Ten Most Unusual TSA Finds of 2025
#10: Bullets and knives wrapped in aluminum foil
Akron-Canton Airport (CAK), Ohio and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)
A classic case of optimism over logic. Wrapping ammunition and knives in aluminum foil may keep leftovers fresh, but it doesn’t make them invisible to X-ray machines.
#9: Firearm in a golf bag
George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH)
A shotgun hidden between golf clubs, complete with a head cover. Apparently, someone took “driving range” too literally.
#8: Strawberry Nesquik Bullets
Miami International Airport (MIA)
In July, a passenger heading to Cuba attempted to slip 64 hollow-point bullets through security by hiding them inside a rubber glove buried in a container of strawberry Nesquik. TSA officers noticed that the container felt unusually heavy, which is generally a bad sign for flavored milk powder.
#7: Knife in a child’s booster seat
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)
A discovery that gave seasoned TSA agents pause. The knife was found during the search of a child booster seat, reminding us that children’s equipment is searched with the same care as adult luggage.
#6: Pills in a shampoo bottle
Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC)
In August, TSA agents discovered two plastic bags full of hydrocodone and benzodiazepines hidden inside a shampoo bottle in checked luggage. The passenger was arrested and the TSA kindly reminded travelers that shampoo is for hair, not pharmaceuticals.
#5: knife in a knee pad
Quad Cities International Airport (MLI), Illinois
Joint support. Not approved for carry-on luggage. The knee pad did its job too well at hiding a blade where no one should hide anything sharp.
#4: Drugs in shoes
Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport in Keāhole (KOA), Hawaii
Two pairs of sneakers were found filled with heroin, fentanyl, ketamine, methamphetamine, acid, Xanax bars and soma pills. The TSA summed it up best online:
“Dirty socks are bad enough… but these kicks were criminal.”
#3: Razor Blades on Clothes
Denver International Airport (DEN)
An attempt to spread razor blades on clothing, presumably in the hope that the amount would amount to invisibility. It wasn’t like that.
#2: Turtles in bra and low pants
Miami International Airport (MIA) and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)
Actually? This happened not once, but twice? Yes. Actually.
In April, an MIA passenger attempted to smuggle two turtles tied with duct tape and wrapped inside her bra. The TSA responded on social media with a request to “stop hiding animals in strange places on your body.” Unfortunately one of the turtles did not survive.
Just a month earlier on EWR, another passenger tried to hide a five-inch turtle in his groinwrapped in a small blue towel. TSA officials noted that it was the first time they had encountered someone hiding a live animal in the front of their pants. That turtle, at least, was unharmed.
#1: Explosive replicas
Boise Airport (BOI), Idaho
Topping the 2025 list of TSA’s most unusual finds is a replica of a pipe bomb discovered in May at the Boise airport. After a bag raised the alarm during screening, TSA explosives specialists found PVC pipes and wooden blocks marked “C4,” complete with wires, an initiator and a detonator.
The items were determined to be non-functional training aids, abandoned at the checkpoint after the passenger admitted what they were. The TSA response online captured the moment perfectly:
“BOI, oh boy!”
Final boarding call
The TSA’s 2025 list may not include raw poultry filled with firearms or live snakes in their carry-on bags, but it’s still surprising how creative people can get when they’re late for a flight.
Somewhere between the booster seat knife and turtles in their underwear lies the tried and true truth of air travel: no matter how many signs you put up, there will always be someone who will test the limits.
And the TSA agents will be there, scanning bags, shaking their heads, and silently adding another story to the pile.
Now, for more laughs, watch the TSA video highlighting the year’s strangest finds.
