Two men from Chicago suburbs and a Florida man were arrested over the past week for trying to bring firearms onto airplanes at Midway and O’Hare airports, police said.
In the latest case, Leo M. Kurylo, 44, was charged with boarding aircraft with a weapon after he was arrested around 9:45 a.m. Saturday at Midway Airport, according to a statement from the Chicago Police Department’s Office of News Affairs.
Kurylo, of 700 block of East North Broadway Street in Lombard, was going through screening at a security checkpoint at Midway when Transportation Security Administration officials discovered an unloaded .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol inside his carry-on bag, according to the statement.
Police were called to the airport, and Kurylo was taken into custody.
On Sunday, Judge Maria Kuriakos Ciesil set bail at $10,000 during a hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building.
The gun was spotted in a zippered pocket of Kurylo’s computer bag as he was on his way to board a Southwest Airlines flight to Las Vegas, according to a prosecutor.
When asked about it, Kurylo confirmed the gun belonged to him and said that when could not find his weapon, he reported it missing to Lombard police Feb. 7.
The prosecutor said Kurylo has a valid firearm owner’s identificaition card.
Kurylo’s attorney said he is an environmental engineer who graduated from Somonauk High School and has degrees from Northern Illinois University. He is scheduled to appear in court again Feb. 20.