This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
A 67-year-old man — who later told police he was there because of actor Tom Cruise — drove an SUV slowly around barriers and then into the doors of the Evans Terminal at Detroit Metro Airport on Friday, May 29, officials say. There were no serious injuries.
The man told authorities after his arrest that “he was there because … Tom Cruise was flying in; he wanted to save his dad,” said Tadarial Sturdivant, senior vice president of emergency and support services and operations for the Wayne County Airport Authority, at an afternoon news conference.
The incident around 9:40 a.m. was the second vehicle crash into a Metro Airport terminal this year. Sturdivant said that, to his knowledge, the man in the latest incident was still being questioned.
The Cadillac SUV made it through the lobby of the terminal down a hall with a sign that read, “Do Not Enter,” according to one video shared with the Detroit Free Press. The location is not far from a TSA screening point area.
The gaps in barriers the man navigated are there for compliance under the Americans with Disabilities Act, but officials are reviewing options to better secure the building, Sturdivant said Friday. The barriers were added after a man crashed into the McNamara Terminal on Jan. 23.
Operations and access to the terminal were delayed Friday while the scene was cleared, Sturdivant said. The airport returned to normal operations about 11:30 a.m.
How did Detroit airport driver crash into Evans Terminal?
The man, who was alone in his SUV, was taken into custody at 9:41 a.m. after driving slowly around barriers at Door 4 of the Warren Cleage Evans Terminal and driving through the doors of the building, Sturdivant said.
The man had to make a U-turn to drive into the terminal the way he did, the airport official said.
Questioned on whether officials should have been able to stop the Cadillac SUV – which Sturdivant described as moving at a slow speed – earlier, Sturdivant defended the response.
“Our police cannot be everywhere at the exact same time,” he said.
Police officers responded within 72 seconds, he said.
Officials are working with the FBI on the investigation.
2nd person detained at DTW, was startled by SUV crash
Shortly after the initial arrest, another person was taken into custody for going through a checkpoint without being properly screened, Sturdivant said.
The passenger was startled by the vehicle driving into the building, dropped his luggage and went into the checkpoint, the airport official said.
“After being interviewed by the police department, it was quickly revealed that he was simply startled and tried to get away from the situation,” Sturdivant said.
That person was released some 40 minutes after being stopped, according to a timeline from the authority.
1 possible injury in latest Detroit airport terminal crash
There was one possible injury to a woman who sought to get out of the man’s way, Sturdivant said.
She complained of minor pain in her leg, he said. She refused treatment and transport to a hospital, and she later flew on to her destination.
In the January crash, six people suffered minor injuries. Officials said the man involved in that crash was experiencing a mental health episode.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Man in custody after DTW crash was disoriented, mentioned Tom Cruise
Reporting by Darcie Moran, John Wisely and Dave Boucher, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
