My wife and I just habitually empty our hands and pockets into the bin. Most recent flight we took, she couldn't find her passport for the extra security check

My wife and I just habitually empty our hands and pockets into the bin. Most recent flight we took, she couldn't find her passport for the extra security check right before the gate. It took us about half an hour to get around to having the security open up the (now closed) bag scanner, which lo and behold, had somehow eaten her (securely places in the bin) passport. The tech was shaking his head, saying "See, this is why you don't put your passport loose in the bin" as if that's a normal thing everyone already knows specifically to avoid.