San Diego Man Accused Of Airport Security Breach In Orange County

San Diego CA

21 August, 2021

4:03 PM

Description

IRVINE, CA — A San Diego man was in custody Saturday after he reportedly stole a vehicle and drove it onto the airfield at John Wayne Airport in Irvine on Friday, spurring a lockdown at the airport. The incident prompted evacuations and grounded flights for hours, officials said. The suspect, Johnny Hecker, 51 of San Diego, was accused of breaching security and was arrested on suspicion of trespassing and vandalism, the Orange County Sheriff's Department said in a statement. At 5:30 p.m., an airport employee discovered a man on the airfield in an area where only airport employees are authorized. Officials said the man took control of an airport vehicle and drove it onto the tarmac outside of Terminal C, where he stopped near a gate and attempted to access a secure area, officials said. The airport was evacuated at 6 p.m. while several Orange County law enforcement agencies conducted a sweep of the terminal and airfield. Hecker was later located in the ceiling on the non-secure side of the terminal, officials said. Elizabeth Robins, a passenger on a Southwest Airlines flight from Las Vegas, told a reporter her plane landed at 6:30 p.m. and she and her fellow passengers were forced to wait for two hours while deputies searched for the suspect. "Glad everyone is safe, and for how Southwest flight attendants kept us entertained while we waited," Robins, who lives in Washington, D.C., told the Orange County Register. "Airplane staff handled the event well and efficiently." Flight operations resumed by 8:30 p.m. Hecker was booked into Orange County Jail, and the investigation was continuing to determine how the man entered the airfield. City News Service contributed to this report.