An Illinois judge acquitted an Orange County man after he allegedly lived in a secured terminal at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport for three months.
Aditya Singh, 37, lived in Orange for about six years. Last October, he boarded a flight from Los Angeles to Chicago for what was supposed to be the first leg of a return trip to his native India. He was arrested in January after two United Airlines employees noticed he was wearing a security badge that an airport employee had reported missing.
Singh told Chicago police he stayed at the airport because the COVID-19 pandemic had made him afraid to fly. He said he survived mostly on the kindness of fellow travelers, some of whom offered to buy him food.
Judge Adrienne Davis acquitted Singh on a trespassing charge in connection with his airport stay earlier this week. Though the court did not elaborate on its rationale, the Transportation Security Administration had already determined Singh did not violate any airport rules.
“Mr. Singh did not breach or improperly enter secured areas,” TSA spokesperson Christine Carrino told The Chicago Tribune. “While we won’t speculate on Mr. Singh’s motivations, he decided to remain in the secure area and made every effort to blend in as a passenger and airline employee until his arrest.”
Singh will return to court on Friday to answer for allegedly violating the terms of his electronic monitoring while out on bond for the trespassing charge.
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