A North Carolina man has been arrested after he stuffed a pistol under a cushion in the lobby of a New York City hotel then left the scene, launching a massive police investigation.
Police say Bobby Glen Jackson, 59, was arrested in his hometown of Fayetteville, N.C. on Saturday for the incident, which happened just minutes before the Boston marathon bombings last Monday.
He's set to be brought to New York next week to face charges of criminal possession of a weapon and reckless endangerment.
The incident happened at the World Center Hotel on April 15, near the 9/11 memorial, where firearms are strictly prohibited.
The pistol was discovered by a woman when she sat on it a short time later.
A massive police investigation was launched after the pistol was discovered, as authorities grew concerned that the abandoned gun and the marathon bombings could be connected somehow.
When police officers reviewed video from the hotel, they spotted Jackson place the gun under the cushion and then enter the 9/11 memorial, where he spent half an hour.
Captured: When police officers reviewed video from the hotel, they spotted Jackson place the gun under the cushion
Just before hiding the gun, he had asked an employee whether off-duty law enforcement officers were allowed to carry guns inside the memorial, police later discovered.
A relative told The New York Times that Jackson had tucked the pistol under the cushion simply because he was rushing to get back to his tour group.
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'He’s not perfect by any means, but he’s a good man,' the relative said. 'He’s a God-fearing man. If what had happened there had happened here, and it hadn’t been times like now, everything would be O.K., because everybody would know him.' The NYPD says Jackson had no permit to carry a gun in New York City.