He was, apparently, very determined. But , fortunately, he didn't have terror on his mind.
The surveillance video showing the man behind the security breach at Newark Airport last weekend has been released by New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg.
It shows a man in a tan jacket waiting at the exit-way where passengers from arriving planes leave the terminal.
The man seems to wait impatiently -- then, when the security guard minding the exit walks away -- for over half-a-minute -- the man meets up with an exiting woman and goes back into the terminal. They seem to be smiling and happy, with no ulterior motives. Perhaps they wanted just one last goodbye kiss.
But the security breach was certainly serious.
“The release of this video will give law enforcement another tool to help find the person who breached the security gate at Newark Liberty Airport,” said Lautenberg. “I encourage this individual or anyone with knowledge of his identity to immediately contact law enforcement.
Minute by minute, the video was broken down as follows: 1:01: TSA officer asks unidentified man to move away from secure area. 4:54: TSA officer leaves his post. 5:31: unidentified man enters secure area.
The breach sent the airport into lockdown mode for more than six hours last Sunday, stranding thousands of passengers.
“It is unacceptable that the Port Authority took so long to produce this tape, but now that it is public we have a better chance of getting to the bottom of this major security incident," said Lautenberg.
The TSA called the video a "hard lesson."
"The surveillance video from Newark Liberty Airport clearly shows that a TSA Officer's actions led to the Sunday incident. We will use this hard lesson to reinforce the sharp focus and tight discipline at all our stations across the country and ensure we maintain the public trust," an agency spokeswoman said in a statement.
Officials ask that anyone with knowledge as to the identity of the man in the video contact Port Authority investigators at (800) 828-PAPD.
