Couple Detained by Airport Security When Agent Finds Stowaway Cat in Suitcase
A couple on their way to a vacation in New York got quite the surprise when they were held by airport security thanks to a furry stowaway trying to tag along.
Nick Coole and his wife, Voirrey Coole, were heading to New York City on Wednesday to celebrate Nick’s birthday. The couple, planning to bring plenty of souvenirs back home, purposely left empty space in their suitcases, as they expected to fill them up once they made it to the city.
However, one member of the Coole clan had other plans.
On their way through the security line at Isle of Man Airport, agents pulled the couple aside. One of their bags hadn’t cleared the scan test.
“Airport security were all very puzzled and repeatedly asked if the bag was ours after it has been through the scanner,” Nick Coole told The Dodo.
After several minutes, he and his wife were escorted into a separate room, along with the offending bag. The pair had no idea what could have caused the bag to trigger an alert and waited anxiously as an agent began checking over their belongings.
That’s when Voirrey Coole suddenly had a guess.
“I bet it’s a cat,” she said, her husband told The Dodo. “It’s the only thing it can be.”
Sure enough, as soon as the security officer unzipped the suitcase, one of the couple’s three cats, Candy, hopped out.
“You know that feeling, when you get ushered into a side room at airport security because you’ve got a cat in your hand luggage?” Coole wrote on Facebook.
The airport staff told them that they had never seen anything like it before.
The couple had a good laugh, not nearly as surprised as the security agents that Candy had managed to sneak her way to the airport. They told The Dodo that their frisky feline is notorious for crawling into places she doesn’t belong, and once even ended up in another city after hiding in a construction van.
“She disappeared for two weeks once only to be found in a different town when we were away on holiday,” Coole said. “We think she got into a builder’s van. She’s very good at sneaking into small spaces.”
But as a result of Candy’s escapades, the couple started to worry that they wouldn’t have enough time to board their plane before takeoff. Thankfully, airport employees were happy to help deliver Candy back into safe hands, and Coole and his wife called friends to come to pick her up, as they hurried to their gate.
“The staff were awesome,” Coole told The Dodo.
“Fair play to airport security for helping to get her home so we could catch our flight,” he wrote on Facebook. Thanks to the kindness of strangers, they made it onto their plane and back on their way.
The couple is now enjoying a happy visit in New York City — without their feline stowaway.
After Coole posted photos of Candy’s stunt online, the cat’s adventure has gone viral, garnering thousands of reactions from Facebook users delighted by the funny tale. The couple reported that their would-be traveler is now safely back at home and looking forward to her next adventure.
The Western Journal reached out to Nick Coole for comment but has not yet received a response. We will update this article if and when we do.
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