DENVER — Another security breach has been reported at Denver International Airport after police say a man crashed his vehicle through a security gate at the airport early Monday morning.
Police said the suspect, who has not been identified, has been arrested. They have not said what charges the man is facing.
Around 2:15 a.m., police said the driver approached a secured gate at DIA for an unknown reason, prompting a security officer to respond. Moments later, police said the suspect crashed through the locked gate after a Denver police officer showed up.
Once inside the airport's secured area, the suspect drove his vehicle onto a loading dock, where he was apprehended by officers, according to Denver police. They said the suspect caused an unknown amount of damage to the gate and his vehicle.
The motive for the alleged trespass is unclear, and it’s the second incident of its kind at DIA this month.
On May 8, a man, identified as 41-year-old Michael Mott, of Pueblo, jumped an airport perimeter fence, walked onto runway 17L, where he was struck and killed by a departing Frontier flight. Officials ruled Mott’s death a suicide.
Aviation security expert and Metro State University Denver professor Jeff Price told Denver7 earlier this month that the goal of an airport perimeter fence is not necessarily to prevent people from trespassing, but more to slow them down.
“It's really there to be a delaying action, a deterrence action, to allow the airport and other personnel to respond if somebody tries to get on the airfield, and then the other reason it's there, and the irony of the situation is to keep people from inadvertently walking onto the airfield from a safety perspective,” Price said, which underscores how Monday’s breach was still possible.
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