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No Charges For Man Accused Of Impersonating TSA Agent At SFO

REDWOOD CITY (CBS SF) -- No charges will be filed against a man who allegedly posed as a TSA agent and privately screened two women while drunk at the San Francisco International Airport last month.

Eric Slighton, a 53-year-old banking executive with homes in San Francisco and Hong Kong who is apparently related to a top Chinese government official won't be charged for the incident at the airport, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said Friday.

Wagstaffe said his office decided not to file charges because investigators haven't been able to track down the two women who Slighton allegedly screened while impersonating a TSA agent.

In addition, Wagstaffe said, there was no surveillance footage from inside the screening room, which also made the case tougher to pursue.

"Without victims, we don't have any case here," he said.

And while it's illegal to impersonate a police officer, there is no law against impersonating a TSA agent, Wagstaffe said.

Slighton was arrested at the security checkpoint of SFO's International Terminal around 12:30 p.m. July 15 after allegedly bringing two women into a screening room while posing as a TSA agent.

The women were described only as being Asian and in their 40s, and despite efforts to track which flights they were on, authorities have been unable to identify them.

The suspect was booked into San Mateo County Jail in Redwood City and released on $10,000 bail the same day.

The TSA has said it was aware of the alleged incident and cooperated with the law enforcement investigation, and that no TSA officers were involved in the incident.

Slighton is listed as the director and partner of Aktis Capital Singapore on the website of Aktis Hanxi Group, a Hong Kong-based international banking and investment firm.

Wagstaffe said he has learned that Slighton is apparently related by marriage to a top official in the Chinese govnerment.

However, he said Slighton's connections were "irrelevant" to the decision not to prosecute him.

© Copyright 2014 by CBS San Francisco and Bay City News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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