Passenger charged with possessing gun at South Bend airport

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The man who was arrested on September 11th after allegedly taking a gun through a South Bend International Airport security checkpoint has been charged, according to court documents.

Anthony Polotto, 49, has been charged with one count of entering a controlled access area of airport while possessing a firearm, a class A misdemeanor.

Polotto was scheduled for a flight from South Bend to Dallas/Fort Worth.

While going through the security checkpoint, one of the TSA agents found a small blue Keltec bag containing a 32-caliber pistol, which was loaded, a seven round magazine and assorted ID cards, according to court records.

Polotto was taken into custody at 12:26 p.m. Polotto apologized and said he forgot he had the weapon in his bag, according to police reports.

While Polotto was being booked, a bottle of pills was located, but it did not have prescription information. A count of possession of a controlled substance was added at booking.

The prosecutor's office says Polotto provided information confirming he had a valid prescription for the pills and was not charged with illegal possession of a controlled substance.