Embattled Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has been referred to as out by a neighborhood resident over an incident on the native airport, the place TSA brokers allegedly stopped him on the safety checkpoint with a loaded, undeclared firearm in his carry-on bag.
And the hits maintain coming, with a latest impartial investigation into bullying and retaliation allegations towards the sheriff discovering that the “preponderance of the proof” exhibits he abused his workplace for political achieve throughout a detailed race in 2024 towards former PCSD Lt. Heather Lappin.
Amid that contentious race, a girl named Cory Stephens complained to the county board of supervisors at a public assembly on Nov. 12, 2024 that the sheriff didn’t face the identical penalties an everyday citizen would have.
“If a non-public citizen had encountered that on the airport, the results would have been better,” Stephens, a longtime Tucson resident and president of the Conservative Coalition of America, advised Fox Information Digital over the telephone Friday.
Nanos’ workplace didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon the incident, which didn’t lead to any prices.
Stephens mentioned she discovered the incident alarming after listening to about it in native circles and was disillusioned it acquired little consideration within the media, so she introduced it up throughout public remark at a board of supervisors listening to.
Nanos is dealing with heightened scrutiny amid the continuing investigation into the disappearance of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, mom of “At present” co-host Savannah Guthrie. Whereas the difficult case stays unsolved, the sheriff’s critics have seized on different points — together with lawsuits towards him from his personal present and former deputies and an allegation that he lied about previous disciplinary issues beneath oath.
“We as residents need solutions,” Stephens mentioned. “The security of our neighborhood is at stake.”
An incident report obtained by Fox Information Digital from Nov. 6, 2024, exhibits a TSA X-ray technician noticed the weapon within the sheriff’s bag and flagged an officer.
“As a regulation enforcement officer, he ought to know the TSA guidelines, tips on how to declare a weapon, safe it and comply with the identical guidelines as everybody else,” Stephens mentioned.
Airport police discovered 5 rounds within the journal and one other within the chamber.
The sheriff missed his flight, stowed the firearm in his car and flew out later.
James Gagliano, a retired FBI agent and Fox Information contributor, mentioned he discovered the entire incident stunning as a result of as a regulation enforcement officer, the sheriff may’ve taken measures to fly with it legally.
“You declare your self as a regulation enforcement officer forward of time,” he mentioned.
The protocol requires affirmation between the TSA and the person’s company, however sometimes permits active-duty personnel to fly with their weapons, he mentioned.
After the X-ray tech discovered the weapon in Lane 1 on the Tucson Worldwide Airport’s B Concourse, the primary responding officer recused himself attributable to an obvious battle of curiosity, based on the incident report.
The second officer introduced Nanos to a non-public screening room, the place he requested the sheriff the place in his bag the gun was situated, based on the incident report.
Nanos advised him it was in a zippered pocket, the place the officer eliminated it and located 5 rounds within the journal and one other within the chamber, based on the incident report.
“The firearm was in a tough plastic holster,” the officer wrote. “The firearm was not artfully or purposely hid.”
The sheriff, in fact, had no lively warrants. However the officer learn him his Miranda rights and knowledgeable his superiors in addition to the Division of Homeland Safety and the FBI.
“Mr. Nanos was escorted off the concourse to position his firearm in his car, and he was rebooked to fly out at a later time,” the report concludes.
That seems to have been the tip of the incident.
However it’s one of many allegations towards the sheriff to resurface through the stalled seek for Nancy Guthrie.
Lt. Lappin’s retaliation criticism led to an impartial investigation by Northstar Employment & Authorized Options, which cleared the sheriff of bullying allegations however discovered that “the preponderance of the proof helps a discovering that Sheriff Nanos used his authority and division sources for political achieve.”
He’s additionally accused of violating division guidelines on courtesy and civility for allegedly placing confidential details about Lappin in a press launch through the marketing campaign.
Nonetheless, whereas the evaluation discovered the sheriff’s actions “inconsistent with the listed insurance policies,” it additionally discovered that he’s not topic to these insurance policies as a result of he’s an elected official.
A spokesperson for the sheriff’s division mentioned Nanos has been made conscious of the investigation’s outcomes.
“The findings don’t help allegations of bullying however word further issues,” she mentioned in a press release. “The Sheriff has requested the complete report for evaluation.”
PCSD declined to remark additional, citing a pending civil lawsuit, and Lappin didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Final yr, the Pima County Board of Supervisors referred Nanos to the state legal professional normal for investigation into whether or not he behaved inappropriately through the marketing campaign. Lappin was suspended over what county officers mentioned gave the impression to be unsubstantiated allegations and prevented from actively campaigning.
The sheriff can also be dealing with a First Modification lawsuit from one other deputy who alleges he was retaliated towards for supporting Lappin forward of the vote.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors, which has a 4-1 Democrat majority, additionally moved unanimously final week to have exterior counsel draft proposed questions for Nanos and plans to convey him in entrance of the panel to reply questions on his office historical past and different issues.
The sheriff, who declined to touch upon the board’s choice, was not accused of wrongdoing in reference to the Guthrie investigation through the assembly.
“We’ve got data that we want as an citizens to know who we’re voting into workplace,” Stephens advised Fox Information Digital. “We want all the knowledge that we may presumably must put the proper folks into workplace.”
Stephens, who unsuccessfully ran for a seat on the board as a Republican in 2024, has referred to as on Nanos to step down following allegations that he lied beneath oath in reference to a lawsuit from one other deputy in addition to on his software to affix the division again within the mid-Nineteen Eighties.
“He was not correctly vetted,” she mentioned.
The seek for Guthrie stays unsolved greater than two months after she is believed to have been taken from her Tucson house at the hours of darkness. No suspects have been publicly recognized.
A masked intruder sporting lengthy sleeves and rubber gloves appeared on Nest doorbell digicam video at her entrance door across the time of her suspected abduction. Though the video has been extensively circulated, it has not led to his id.
And a DNA pattern taken from inside the house containing genetic materials from an unknown male has not but been unraveled.
The household is asking anybody with data to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI. There’s a mixed reward of greater than $1.2 million for data that results in an arrest or Guthrie’s restoration.
