Man Lived Inside Airport For Three Months Due To His 'Fear Of Covid'

A man camped out in an airport for three months, claiming he was too scaed to fly because of the pandemic.

Aditya Singh, 36, was arrested on Saturday after living undetected in a secure area of Chicago's international airport.

Airline staff became alerted to him when he was asked for ID, but pointed to a badge which had been reported missing by an operations manager back in October.

Police say Singh arrived at O'Hare International Airport on 19 October, after arriving on a flight from Los Angeles.

Chicago Police Department

He had found the badge in the airport and was 'scared to go home due to Covid', according to Assistant State Attorney Kathleen Hagerty.

The Chicago Tribune reported that he lived on handouts from passengers.

Cook County Judge Susana Ortiz was shocked at the details of the case.

Speaking to the prosecutor who explained the allegations on Sunday, she said: "So if I understand you correctly, you're telling me that an unauthorised, non-employee individual was allegedly living within a secure part of the O'Hare airport terminal from 19 October 2020 to 16 January 2021, and was not detected? I want to understand you correctly."

Mr Singh usually lives just outside Los Angeles in a suburb in a shared house with roommates. He also has a masters degree in hospitality but is currently unemployed. He has no record of criminal behaviour and it's not known why he ended up in Chicago, according to Assistant Public Defender Courtney Smallwood.

He's now been charged with felony criminal trespass to a restricted area of an airport and misdemeanour theft.

If he's able to post the $1,000 (£738) bail, he has been barred from entering the airport.

He has been banned from entering the airport if he is able to post the $1,000 (£738) for bail.

Judge Ortiz said: "The court finds these facts and circumstances quite shocking for the alleged period of time that this occurred.

"Based upon the need for airports to be absolutely secure so that people feel safe to travel, I do find those alleged actions do make him a danger to the community."

The Chicago Department of Aviation, which oversees the city's airports, said in a statement: "While this incident remains under investigation, we have been able to determine that this gentleman did not pose a security risk to the airport or to the travelling public."

Mr Singh is due back in court on 27 January.

Amelia Ward

Amelia is a journalist at LADbible. After studying journalism at Liverpool John Moores and Salford Uni (don't ask), she went into PR and then the world of music. She spent a few years working on festivals and events. Soon realising you can't pay your bills with guestlist, she went back to her roots. In her spare time, Amelia likes music, Liverpool FC, and spending good, quality time with her cat, Paul. You can contact Amelia at [email protected].

@ameliasward