2 men arrested for having guns at airport car rental agency

Palm Springs Police arrest 2 men who allegedly had guns while trying to rent a car at the Palm Springs International Airport on Tuesday.

According to Palm Springs Police, just after 4:00 p.m. Tuesday, they got a call that two men who were attempting to rent a vehicle at the Palm Springs International Airport may have been carrying a gun.

Palm Springs police officers contacted two male individuals who matching the description. The two individuals, later identified as Anthony Wayne Lomas and Jody Wayne Noel, were inside the airport terminal near the rental car agencies.

While the officers were speaking with Lomas and Noel, they ran from the officers. The officers chased after Noel who fought with them as they attempted to arrest him inside the airport terminal. Noel was taken into custody and found to have a loaded handgun in his possession.

Witnesses then informed officers that they spotted Lomas running northbound in the 200 block of North El Cielo Road. Additional officers responded to the area and located Lomas where they arrested him.

Another witness reported that Lomas had thrown a handgun into some bushes as he was running on North El Cielo. Officers searched the area and found a located a handgun in a bush. The handgun was determined to have been stolen.

The investigation revealed that neither Lomas or Noel were passengers on an arriving flight or scheduled on a departing flight from the airport. Officers determined both individuals were at the airport for the sole purpose of renting a vehicle.

Both Lomas and Noel were transported to the Larry Smith Correctional Facility in Banning where they were booked awaiting their arraignment.