An investigation is underway to answer why a handgun once used in a crime in the city was found in the Harford County home of a former top level city police commander.

Advertisement Crime gun found in former city police commander's Bel Air home Harford County authorities: Dan Lioi arrested, charged with assault Share Shares Copy Link Copy

The WBAL-TV 11 News I-Team has learned an investigation is underway to answer why a handgun once used in a crime in the city was found in the Harford County home of a former top level city police commander.Mobile users tap here for videoThe case raises troubling questions, including how key evidence could disappear without anyone noticing.The city seizes thousands of guns that are supposed to be kept under lock and key in the department's evidence control, so what happened in this case, which came to light when the former commander was arrested?In mid-June, sheriffs in Harford County were called to a Bel Air home for a call regarding domestic assault. According to their report, they saw a woman with a swollen face who told them her husband, Dan Lioi, hit her with his fist during an argument.Lioi was arrested and charged with second-degree assault. Lioi was a long-time Baltimore police commander. He retired earlier at the rank of lieutenant colonel.After his arrest, sheriffs then seized five guns from the home, all of which were handguns, officials said. They confirmed that one of them was a so-called crime gun -- a weapon, it appears, that should have been in the city's police evidence control.In response to I-Team lead investigative reporter Jayne Miller's questions, the Sheriff’s Office said, "One of the guns was once recovered by Baltimore City in the course of a criminal investigation. There is now a joint investigation with multiple agencies to figure out why it's there (in Lioi's home)."Evidence gets signed in and out of evidence control by officers and detectives who need to take it to court. The name used to sign out the gun in question is part of the investigation.Lioi was involved in the Police Department's gun enforcement efforts when he was on the force, Miller learned.He recently took a job with a small police force in Maryland. He's currently on unpaid leave from that job as a result of the domestic case and the broader investigation, Miller said.The Baltimore Police Department would not comment specifically on the investigation; however, a representative said the department has been trying to make evidence control more accountable, saying routine audits and a change in security procedures have been put in place.