Cleveland airport security chief quits

The man who CLEVELAND — reported that two top officials in Mayor Frank Jackson’s administration had breached security last October at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport has quit his job.

Howard Phillips, the airports security manager, resigned Monday, Dan Williams, a spokesman for the Jackson administration, confirmed Tuesday to cleveland. com. He had been on the job less than two years.

Williams said Phillips was not fired, nor was he facing any disciplinary action. He added he didn’t know what prompted Phillips’ decision. “On his own volition he resigned,” Williams said.

Neither Williams nor airport Communications Manager Michele Dynia would comment further. Phillips was not immediately available for comment.

Phillips was hired as security director in October 2017. His annual pay was about $83,200.

As security manager, Phillips was the point investigator for two security breaches, one in October involving an airport administrator and another in February involving a car that crashed through an air field gate.

Hopkins and the city drew the ire of the Transportation Security Administration for being slow to report the October incident in which Fred Szabo, then the assistant airport director, escorted Jackson’s chief of operations, Darnell Brown, around TSA security screeners.

Cleveland.com learned the details of the incident from sources. Those details were later confirmed in public records release by the city.

Brown had already cleared security to catch a flight but realized he had left his cellphone in his car. Szabo helped him retrieve the phone and then bypass security and board the flight with the unscreened phone.

Records obtained by cleveland.com show that the breach was the third security-related incident in two years to involve Fred Szabo, who was subsequently removed as assistant airport director.

Szabo initially misled Phillips about having escort paperwork that was required for him to take Brown around security, according to records.

TSA recommended the city permanently revoke Szabo’s access to secure areas as a result of his “egregious actions,” records show.

TSA also was angered that Cleveland waited 20 hours to notify the agency about the breach.

Phillips told TSA investigators later that airport chief Robert Kennedy told him to wait on reporting the incident until after Szabo could be questioned, according to records released by the city.

Ultimately several people reported the incident to TSA.

TSA was so upset with the city that it issued a letter warning that it could fine the city $13,333 for each of five violations of federal regulations.