Las Vegas Airport – According to a police report made public on Tuesday, two airline ticket agents were harmed when a 33-year-old California man broke security at a crowded Las Vegas airport on Sunday, causing panic among business travellers and aircraft delays and cancellations.
According to an arrest report that equated the event at Harry Reid International Airport to terrorism, neither injury was described as significant.
Stefan Mathias Hutchison, 33, of Oakland, told the arresting officers that he didn’t want to wait for a flight on Monday and that he wanted to go home right away. He was reportedly also detained on misdemeanour charges at the airport on Saturday after slipping past TSA screeners, which the police similarly described as a security violation.
Prior to his court appearance on a burglary allegation before a judge in Las Vegas on Wednesday, Hutchison remained in custody. This is because under Nevada law, entering a building with the intent to commit a crime is a felony.
He was represented by a deputy public defender, who declined to comment on the matter.
Police said that Hutchison pushed through a Spirit Airlines employee and through a locked door, causing the woman to smack her head on the wall. Before the police arrived, another Spirit employee tackled Hutchison. According to the police report, both were rushed to hospitals after complaining of pain.
The sounds were likened to gunfire in police and social media reports.
After being arrested on Saturday, Hutchison was detained for a number of hours before being released on bail with a commitment to appear in court on October 11 for the misdemeanour charges. Prior to his arrest, he is said to have gotten past a TSA screening checkpoint, entered a boarding gate concourse, and stolen a pair of sunglasses from a variety store.
The hometown of Hutchison was changed in the arrest report. He was from Carmichael, California, the police stated on Monday.
