A New Jersey hospital's marketing director was arrested after police found more than three dozen guns hidden inside an unlocked closet at the hospital, according to the Secaucus Police Department.
Police found the cache of firearms on July 18 while doing a sweep of Hudson Regional Hospital in response to a bomb threat, which turned out to be a hoax. Police found 11 handguns of various calibers, 27 rifles/shotguns and a .45 caliber semi-automatic rifle with a high-capacity magazine. A high-capacity handgun magazine was also seized, according to police.
After the discovery, Reuven Alonalayoff, the Secaucus-based hospital's marketing director, was arrested and charged with possession of an assault firearm and two counts of possession of a high-capacity magazine. The 46-year-old was arrested at Newark Liberty International Airport on Aug. 7 with the assistance of the United States Department of Homeland Security Investigations.
"The presence of weapons in a hospital is inexcusable beyond comprehension and contradicts our mission of care and our commitment to the safety of our community of staff, patients and the extended community," Hudson Regional Hospital officials said in a statement to NJ.com. "While regrettable, this incident has given us occasion to review security protocols and we have taken steps to assure that it will never happen again."
Hospital officials said Mr. Alonalayoff was a consultant and that the firearms were in a locked office that he used on the administrative floor of the hospital, according to NJ.com.