Syr airport gun

A TSA officer detected this .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun, loaded with six bullets, in a Manlius man's carry-on as it passed through an x-ray machine at the Syracuse airport.

(Photo Courtesy Transportation Security Administration)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Officials have not identified the Manlius man who airport security said was found with a loaded gun in his carry-on Sunday evening.

In a news release describing the incident, the Transportation Security Administration said the federal organization's officers detected a .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun loaded with six bullets. The TSA did not provide the man's name, but said he told officers he forgot the gun was in his carry-on.

Syracuse police spokesman Lt. Eric Carr referred all questions about the incident to the TSA. Carr confirmed Syracuse police's involvement with the incident, saying officers assisted the TSA.

But the case was "turned over to Syracuse police as soon as the gun was detected in the x-ray machine, which is standard operating procedure," according to TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein.

"It's up to them whether they cite somebody, issue a summons, or arrest somebody," Farbstein said. "We don't see the gun again. It's an illegal item. In theory it would be evidence so the police handle it from it there."

What actions police take depend on state and local laws, Farbstein said.

Nationwide, 2,212 firearms were found in carry-ons at airport security checkpoints. Of those, 83 percent were loaded, Farbstein said. She was not able to provide the numbers for how many people were arrested, cited or issued summons in those cases.

"It really depends on the jurisdiction," she said. "In NYC, you're going to get an arrest.

Some other states, like Texas, they have more lenient weapons laws than in New York City."

In a four-day period in January, New York and New Jersey Port Authority Police made two arrests after TSA officers found guns in carry-on bags, CBS Local New York reported.

In both cases, TSA officers detected the guns in x-ray machines and alerted police. Both men who had the guns in carry-ons were then arrested on state weapons charges, according to the report. The names of the men were not provided in the reports.

A search of police records shows that no one was charged at the airport on Sunday or in the following days. No one from Manlius has been arrested in connection with any weapons-related charges, records show.

Syracuse.com has submitted a Freedom of Information Law request asking for the police reports related to Sunday's incident at the airport. The request has been acknowledged by the city.

Sunday's incident is not the first in which a local person has come to Syracuse Hancock International Airport with a weapon in a carry-on. Last year, it happened twice, according to the TSA.

In March, a Tompkins County woman told officers she forgot a semi-automatic handgun was in her carry-on bag, the TSA said. The woman was allowed to put her gun in her checked baggage, which already contained a different, properly cased firearm, Farbstein said at the time. Syracuse police did not comment or provide the name of the woman in that incident.

In 2013, an unidentified Chittenango man tried to bring a loaded handgun through security, the TSA said. Syracuse police confiscated the gun, but the man was allowed to catch his flight to Albuquerque, N.M.

On Christmas day in 2003, TSA officers detected a loaded handgun in Army National Guard member Cody Trindle's carry-on luggage as he attempted to pass through the passenger screening checkpoint and board a flight to Chicago.

Syracuse police charged Trindle with criminal possession of a weapon, a felony, but opted not to book Trindle in the Justice Center jail. Officers issued Trindle an appearance ticket. Syracuse city officials at first refused to confirm or discuss Trindle's arrest, though the TSA said nothing barred them from doing so.

The city later confirmed Trindle's arrest. As a result of public criticism about how city officials handled Trindle's case, the city told Syracuse.com it had developed a new policy for disclosing airport crime information to the public. The policy dictated that officials release the name, charges and biographical information about the suspect to the news media.

Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick said at the time that an assistant district attorney who had recommended the appearance ticket would be disciplined.

He said that typically, a person who brings a gun to the airport and is charged should be placed under arrest and appear before a judge.

"There may be an innocent explanation, " Fitzpatrick said. "But somebody should be placed in custody."

On Sunday, Syracuse police transferred the Manlius man's gun to a family member who was not traveling, the TSA said. He was permitted to catch his flight.

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