Fireworks at Philly airport brings arrest

A Northeast Pennsylvania man faces a maximum of 10 years in prison for attempting to carry homemade fireworks onto a plane Thursday morning at Philadelphia International Airport, officials said.

Joseph A. Picklo of Dallas attempted to get on a flight bound for San Francisco carrying two homemade M-80s, a plastic bottle filled with a powdery mixture, a cigarette lighter, and a test tube with a powdery substance and a wick, according to his arrest warrant.

Picklo was carrying the items in a backpack as he tried to get through a Transportation Security Administration checkpoint for Terminals D and E around 6 a.m., the warrant said.

The discovery prompted the checkpoint to be shut down and passengers were moved to the security check-in at Terminal C, airport spokeswoman Victoria Lupica said.

The closed checkpoint was reopened at 6:18 a.m., Lupica said.

The Philadelphia Police Bomb Squad neutralized the fireworks. Police said early in the day that Picklo told authorities that he forgot he was carrying the fireworks.

Picklo was charged with attempting to carry an explosive device on a plane, said a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office. Picklo appeared before a federal magistrate and had a federal defender appointed to represent him.