It was an odd side story to the bombing in New York last month: Two passers-by spotted a bag on West 27th Street in Chelsea, opened it, removed the pressure cooker inside and took the bag with them. In doing so, the authorities have said, they may have defused a second bomb.

The two men simply liked the bag they happened upon, according to officials for EgyptAir, where the men, who were visiting New York, worked as in-flight security guards.

“You know, we see things left on the street in New York all the time,” one of the officials said. “Stuff no one wants. It’s normal to take them.” The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not permitted to publicly discuss the matter.

Indeed, there is little unusual here about what the men, identified as Hassan Ali and Abou Bakr Radwan by the airline officials, did with the bag. New Yorkers have long scooped up finds off the pavement.