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A diamond is a girl’s best friend — and for a Queens bride who lost her gem at JFK Airport, a TSA agent is a hero.
Flushing residents Amir Khan Durrani and his wife Madison’s pandemic-delayed honeymoon to Guam got off to a rocky start at JFK Airport recently after they passed through the TSA’s checkpoint at Terminal 7.
When they stopped at a coffee place before boarding their flight, Madison screamed when she realized that her newly purchased diamond was missing from her engagement ring, the agency said in a news release.
“My wife was crying hysterically as we did not know what happened, nor did we know how to approach the situation,” Durrani wrote in an email to the TSA.
He raced back to the checkpoint and alerted the TSA agents.
“Everyone was extremely kind and helped me as much as they could to locate the lost diamond,” he said. “I told them that I knew this was not their job” to help find a lost diamond, although “everyone present helped look for the diamond to no avail.”
After they landed in Guam, the couple received a shocking text message and voicemail — the TSA believed the wayward gem had been found.
The Durranis sent the agency a photo of the stone, which matched the one found at the checkpoint thanks to eagle-eyed lead TSA officer John Killian, who had returned to the location five hours after it was reported missing.
While standing at the TSA supervisory podium, he glanced toward the checkpoint line to get a sense of how busy it was when a glint caught his attention.
“That’s when I spotted the sparkle and thought to myself, ‘No way that could really be it.’ I walked over and picked it up,” he said.
The diamond was lying on the floor between the metal detector and the X-ray machine.
“The shine caught my eye. I was like, ‘Wow, I just found this diamond!’” Killian added.
In his email thanking the TSA, Durrani said their trip “went from a chaotic moment to one at peace.”
“I would like to commend everyone and their efforts for finding our diamond and safekeeping it before our return back to New York. I want to mention deep down in my heart, that this moment put us in relief. I hope everyone understands how much this meant to my wife and me,” he wrote.
“Thank you so much to all the staff present and especially to officer John Killian. I might not ever meet you, but you had an impact on us at that moment and I will never forget it. I wish you all the best for your efforts and honesty,” the happy hubby added.
After returning home from their honeymoon, the couple connected with TSA Manager Mishane Henry.
“Before I handed over the diamond, I asked them to show me the ring to make sure that I could confirm handing it over to the right couple. It was a match,” Henry said.
John Bambury, the TSA’s federal security director at the airport, said, “This is a fine example of the integrity of our workforce here at JKF Airport.”
“I know that it is always rewarding when our team is able to reunite a passenger with something that they’ve left behind or lost at the checkpoint,” he said. “We frequently return a jacket, a Teddy bear or a set of keys that have been left at one of our checkpoints.
“But returning a lost diamond will certainly be one we will always remember,” Bambury added.
Efforts by The Post to reach the couple Thursday were unsuccessful.
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