A man who allegedly broke through airport security at the John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, and was found in the ceiling by law enforcement, has been arrested.
The incident began around 5:30 p.m. Friday evening, when airport employees found the man on the airfield “in a secure area where only airport employees should access,” according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
The man allegedly took control of an airport vehicle and “drove it onto the airfield outside Terminal 3,” the department said in a statement.
Then, he stopped near a gate and “attempted to access a secure area of the terminal,” according to the department.
“At that point, the employee lost sight of the man, and notified emergency personnel,” the statement read.
The airport was placed on lockdown, and the terminal was evacuated around 6 p.m. Law enforcement officials began conducting a “thorough sweep” of the airport terminal and airfield.
They eventually found the suspect “in the ceiling on the non-secure side of the terminal/”
An NBC Los Angeles reporter was at the scene when authorities were negotiating with the suspect as he was in the celing.
“The guy who is the reason@JohnWayneAir was evacuated is in the ceiling.@OCSheriff deputies trying to negotiate him down, ‘Do you want to talk to someone about what is happening right now?'” tweeted Robert Kovacik.
The suspect was taken into custody.
The sheriff’s department and airport said that they will conduct “a thorough investigation to determine how the man entered the airfield and attempt to identify him.”
Carrie Braun, spokesperson for the sheriff’s department, told Newsweek Saturday morning that the suspect is still speaking with investigators and that his name, and the charges he may be facing, can not be released at this time.
John Wayne Airport did not immediately respond to Newsweek’s request for comment on Saturday morning.
The incident at John Wayne Airport is the latest of several airport security breaches in recent months.
At Newark Liberty International Airport in July, law enforcement evacuated a terminal when a woman allegedly exited through a security checkpoint, NBC New York reported. The security breach sparked alarm, causing passengers to run and exit the terminal. The woman was reportedly taken into custody.
In June, a woman was arrested at the Albany International Airport was arrested after she allegedly chased after an Allegiant Airlines employee to retrieve her luggage.
“The Allegiant representative failed to allow the security door to the ramp close before proceeding to the ramp,” the airport said in a statement at the time, according to News 10. “The subject was able to pass through the door before it closed and access the ramp area where she was arrested.”
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