Massachusetts State Police troopers assigned to Logan Airport repeatedly failed to conduct required terminal security sweeps, according to sources who spoke with investigators looking into the lapse. In one case on October 4, surveillance video reportedly showed a trooper never entered the area he was assigned to check — even though he reported the sweep as completed.
The allegations, first reported by CBS News citing I-Team sources, describe a pattern of troopers skipping the nightly checks of secure and restricted areas that are supposed to happen at Logan every night after the final flights depart. On the night in question, a Logan passenger was left stranded overnight inside a restricted area, and an airport employee had to return the passenger's checked luggage, according to the same sources.
Sources told the I-Team that surveillance cameras showed the assigned trooper did not conduct the sweep that night, and that the trooper allegedly lied when he reported it as finished. The incident prompted Massachusetts State Police to open a broader internal affairs investigation into whether troopers on duty were fulfilling their responsibilities, the report notes.
Why the Sweeps Matter
Todd McGhee, a former state trooper, told the outlet that troopers conduct these sweeps to make sure airport areas are secured after the last flight leaves and TSA stops staffing the gates. He said the concern is straightforward: people with bad intentions or nefarious acts could exploit any gap in coverage once those areas go unchecked overnight.
McGhee also said Logan has substantial camera coverage, and that recordings can be reviewed afterward to confirm whether a trooper was active or inactive during an assigned shift — which is reportedly how the October 4 lapse came to light. He added that misreporting a completed task would be grounds for disciplinary measures, and that a failure to conduct sweeps ultimately points to a supervisory issue rather than just one trooper's conduct.
State Police Response
In a statement, Massachusetts State Police said it worked with airport partners to review the incident and reinforce security protocols, and that it remains committed to the safety and security of people traveling through or working at Boston Logan International Airport. The department said it will continue working with its partners to maintain airport safety and security going forward.
Troopers assigned to Logan are required to activate body-worn cameras during terminal sweeps, according to the I-Team's sources. The outcome of the internal affairs investigation, including any discipline, has not been made public.
A Separate Breach at Another Airport
The Logan lapse came two days before an unrelated security breach at John Wayne Airport in California, where, according to Fox News, a Delta passenger breached a gate on October 6 and accessed the airfield. The passenger allegedly stole a baggage tug, crashed it into another vehicle near a different gate, and attempted to steal a lavatory truck before Airport Police Services arrested him. That airport said the incident had no impact on operations, though the episode underscores how quickly a security gap on the tarmac can escalate once someone gets past a restricted perimeter.
At Logan, State Police Troop F is tasked with policing and ensuring security across all Massport properties, including a visible police presence in the terminals under the airport's community policing program, according to a description on the state's Mass.gov website. Whether the internal affairs probe leads to discipline for the trooper involved in the October 4 incident remains an open question State Police have not yet answered.
