Fred Vankirk, Ohio Tourist, Busted For Gun Possession In NYC Hotel

A 59-year-old tourist was busted over the weekend for having not one but three guns in his New York City hotel room.

Fred Vankirk, from Columbus, Ohio, ordered room service to his room in the Radisson Hotel in midtown on Saturday morning. When a hotel employee came to deliver the food, she spotted Vankirk's .357 Magnum on the nightstand and reported it to hotel security, the New York Post reports.

When officers arrived to his room, Vankirk reportedly said, "I have three guns in the hotel room. Is that what this is about?"

Police found another .357 Magnum revolver and a .45 semiautomatic and at least one box of ammo, according to court papers obtained by the New York Post.

Vankirk, who has a gun license in his home state, told police after being arrested that he had been in New York for roughly three weeks and was carrying the guns for protection, MyFoxNY.com reports.

Vankirk was charged with three counts of second-degree gun possession and was being held on $50,000 bond, according to court papers. He faces a sentence of five to 15 years per count if convicted.

Tourists to NYC have had issues with the city's gun laws of late. In December, a Tennessee nurse was arrested for trying to check her .32-caliber pistol at the 9/11 Memorial. In September, an Indiana jeweler was arrested for trying to check his .45 Ruger at the Empire State Building, according to the New York Post.