Bullets concealed in Nesquik are just some of the unusual finds the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) discovered at airport checkpoints in 2025.
TSA unveiled its top-10 ‘Best Catches’ list for 2025, ranking the most peculiar items discovered and removed from airports nationwide. No Chicago airports made the list this year — TSA agents removed a vape hidden inside a tube of toothpaste from Chicago’s Midway International Airport in 2024 — but one TSA find at an Illinois airport did earn a ranking for all the wrong reasons.
Released on Thursday, Jan. 22, TSA’s list revealed that a knife found in a knee brace at Illinois’ Quad Cities International Airport in Moline was ranked the fifth ‘Best Catch’ by agents all of last year.
Another Midwest-area airport also ranked on TSA’s naughty list, with explosive replicas found at Boise airport, marking it No. 1 for “Best Catches.”
TSA’s Top 10 Best Catches of 2025 list includes:
- Explosive replicas at Boise Airport (BOI)
- Turtles in pants and bra, Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) and Miami International Airport (MIA)
- Razor blades in clothes, Denver International Airport (DEN)
- Drugs in shoes, Hawaii’s Kona International Airport (KOA)
- Knife in a knee brace, Illinois’ Quad Cities International Airport (MLI)
- Pills in a shampoo bottle, Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC)
- Knife in a car seat, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)
- Bullets in Nesquik, Miami International Airport (MIA)
- Firearm in a golf bag, Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH)
- 10. Bullets and knives in tinfoil, Ohio’s Akron-Canton Airport (CAK) and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)
As a reminder, the TSA lists on its website what items are permitted and prohibited when boarding a commercial flight. TSA may impose civil penalties of up to $14,950 per violation per person.
