Homeless man busted twice in one week in NYC — including for gun at LaGuardia and hollow-point bullets — and dumped back on street
A man was busted twice in one week in New York City — including for carrying an illegal gun and 55 hollow-point bullets — and dumped back on the street again each time, records show.
Floyd Pickens, Jr., a 61-year-old homeless man from Glendale, Ariz., was first arrested Jan. 9 while walking through Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport in Queens, where he “engaged in conversation with a Port Authority cop’’ and revealed he was packing, the Port Authority Police Department said.
In addition to toting the illegal handgun, the suspect had more than 60 rounds of ammo on him, cops said.
Authorities charged Pickens with criminal possession of a firearm — then cut him loose with a desk-appearance ticket.
“Who in their right mind would give this guy a DAT?” a law-enforcement source griped to The Post on Sunday, referring to the PAPD cops who issued the ticket as opposed to putting him through the court system, which was an option.
“[The Port Authority] is the gatekeeper into New York City. The fact they would give this guy a DAT is concerning,” the source said.
The suspect likely still would have been released without bail under the state’s controversial criminal-justice reforms, which may be why he was given just a DAT, sources said.
But at least putting him through the system would have bought more time for authorities to check on possible out-of-state issues involving him and what the situation was with the weapon and ammo, sources said.
“It buys time … allows for the system to discover why he’s here,” the source said.
The suspect also could have been barred from entering a city shelter with a court-system bust on his record, sources said.
The PAPD did not immediately respond to a Post request for comment Sunday.
After he was released, Pickens made his way to a men’s shelter on Clay Street near Paidge Avenue in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, police sources said.
City Department of Homeless Services Police searched him as part of the screening process at the shelter around 12:45 a.m. Jan. 11 and found he had another 93 bullets, including 55 hollow points and 38 regular rounds, on him, according to a criminal complaint.
He also had an array of police equipment, including six magazine holsters, nine gun holsters, five pairs of handcuffs, six handcuff keys and a body-worn camera, among other things, sources said.
DHS cops charged him with unlawful possession of an ammunition feeding device and possession of pistol ammunition, the complaint said.
Pickens pleaded not guilty during his arraignment and was cut loose again because the raps involved a nonviolent felony and are not bail-eligible under the state reforms.
His next court date is scheduled for March 20 in Brooklyn criminal court, according to court records.
Pickens’ public defender, Jeffrey Levicki, did not return a request for comment.
