A 20-year-old suspected drug dealer from East Lyme is facing new criminal charges in Massachusetts after police said he attempted to board a flight at Logan International Airport with a loaded handgun, drugs and $57,000.

Joseph A. Churyk was due to appear in New London Superior Court on Monday where he has multiple felony drug sale and possession charges stemming from his arrest by Montville police in 2022.

Churyk, however, was not in court because he remains incarcerated in Massachusetts following his arrest on Nov. 4 by Massachusetts State police. New London County Assistant State’s Attorney Christa Baker said Churyk was caught trying to board a JetBlue flight to San Francisco with a 9 mm handgun, cash and drugs.

A Transportation Security Administration found the gun while screening the carry on bags of Churyk and a 17-year-old female companion, records show. The gun was found in a pink and white backpack being carried by the teen, who told police Churyk had asked her to carry it through airport security.

A search of the three bags revealed a total of more than $57,839 along with some folded bills containing a powdery substance suspected to be fentanyl. Asked by police about the large amount of cash, police said Churyk offered several explanation - claiming he owned several limited liability corporations, sold stocks, collected social security checks and had a payout from a car accident.

During a search of Churyk’s car, police said they found a round from the 9 mm, 21 grams of fentanyl and a small amount of marijuana packaged for sale.

Because of Churyk’s absence in court on Monday, New London Superior Court Judge John Newson raised Churyk’s bonds by a total of $850,000 on six pending criminal cases from arrests in Montville, Norwich and Waterford.

Despite having no known legitimate employment, Newson said Churyk has to date come up “untold amounts of cash“ in order to post bond. The judge ordered a rearrest on the pending cases. Defense attorney Samuel Nassetta argued unsuccessfully for a less drastic bond increase, saying his client has not been able to post bond in Massachusetts.

At the time of his arrest in Massachusetts, Churyk was free on a $250,000 from a Oct. 18, 2022 arrest at the Chesterfield Lodge Hotel at 1596 Hartford-New London Turnpike in Montville. Police said Churyk was found in possession of $17,561, a money counter, suboxone pills and strips, more than six pounds of marijuana, 11 pounds of cannabis edibles, suspected crack cocaine, 12 grams of suspected cocaine, 80 THC vape cartridges, eight grams of fentanyl, five grams of marijuana butter, an Airsoft-style handgun and and two digital scales, among other items.

In the Montville case, Churyk is charged with possession of over a kilogram of marijuana, operating a drug factory and possession of narcotics with intent to sell among other charges.

On Oct. 17, Norwich police arrested Churyk as a suspect in a May 16 shooting of an unoccupied vehicle in front of a Norwich residence. Police said the shooting was targeted and appeared to be drug related. The 9 mm shells collected from the scene of the shooting match the gun seized at Logan last month, police said. He is charged with illegal discharge of a firearm, third-degree criminal mischief, first-degree reckless endangerment, carrying a pistol without a permit and breach of peace in that case.

Court records show Churyk additionally faces a charge of first-degree sexual assault stemming from a Feb. 16, 2022 arrest in Willimantic. Details of that arrest were not immediately available.

g.smith@theday.com