A traveler hid a smoke grenade in peanut butter. TSA found it

Peanut butter isn't usually considered dangerous at airports, but a passenger at Indianapolis International Airport was recently caught for using the food to conceal a live smoke grenade, according to the Transportation Security Administration.

Checked baggage officers operating the X-ray scanner flagged the traveler's checked luggage for an additional screening earlier this month. Supervisory TSA officer Anthony Vela and explosives specialist Michael Dunphy inspected the bag and found two live smoke grenades, with one "jammed into a full jar of peanut butter," according to a June 25 news release.

"After all contents were removed from the bag, I thought, 'Weren’t there two grenades in this bag?'" said Dunphy, an 18-year TSA explosives specialist who previously spent more than two decades in the U.S. Navy as an explosive ordnance disposal tech, in the release. "After additional inspection of all the contents in the bag, it became obvious the second grenade was in the peanut butter jar, so I was surprised!"

It's not uncommon for the checked baggage technology alarms to be set off by "unusual items versus an actual threat," said Dunphy.

Officials called the traveler to the airline ticket counter. According to the release, the passenger told authorities that "a friend told him he could get the smoke grenades through TSA by placing them in a jar of peanut butter."

"With the concealment method used, we had concern about the intentions and, as a result, quickly incorporated the airport police and airline station manager to ensure we approached the traveler in a cautious and safe manner," said Indiana TSA Federal Security Director Aaron Batt in the release. "The technology in place for checked baggage performed well and gave our officers a chance to review an image that resulted in the need for physical inspection of the targeted area highlighted by the equipment."

Indianapolis Airport Authority Police were also called to the scene for assistance. However, airport operations were unaffected by the incident.

TSA did not disclose the passenger's identity or if he will face charges, but Batt said that attempting to conceal a prohibited item will result in "severe consequences."

"Although you may not have intentions for something to occur, carrying prohibited items always has the potential for unintentionally causing harm," said Batt. "Imagine in this case had the pressurization caused the device to accidentally release smoke filling the cabin and aircraft while in flight."