Originally Posted by ExpatExp

Then, about a month later, a letter arrived from the FAA (yes, the FAA) saying that the investigation into my illegally-checked items had been concluded with no prejudice toward me.

You can imagine my surprise. What investigation? What illegal items? What on earth was going on?

Did some research online, and it turns out there are some crazy things on the list of items you can't check in luggage. For example, refrigerator magnets. Because they might affect the aircraft's guidance systems.