Man Lives at O’Hare International Airport for 3 Months

The Chicago Tribune reported that a man, Aditya Singh, lived at O’Hare International Airport from Oct 19, 2020 to January 16th, 2021.

HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?!

Singh claimed to be too afraid of COVID-19 to fly back home to California. Not only was he living in the airport, but he was in a secure and restricted area… AND NOBODY NOTICED.

Aditya Singh, 36, is charged with felony criminal trespass to a restricted area of an airport and misdemeanor theft.

Cook County Judge Susana Ortiz had this to say about the ordeal.

“So if I understand you correctly,” Ortiz said, “you’re telling me that an unauthorized, nonemployee individual was allegedly living within a secure part of the O’Hare airport terminal from Oct. 19, 2020, to Jan. 16, 2021, and was not detected? I want to understand you correctly.”

Early Saturday afternoon, two United Airlines employees approached Singh and asked to see his identification. Assistant State’s Attorney Kathleen Hagerty said Singh lowered his face mask and showed them an airport ID badge that he was wearing around his neck.

The badge actually belonged to an operations manager who had reported it missing Oct. 26. The employees called 911. Police took Singh into custody about 11:10 a.m. Saturday in Terminal 2 near Gate F12.

Singh does not have a criminal background, according to Assistant Public Defender Courtney Smallwood. She said he has a master’s degree in hospitality, but is currently unemployed.

As a condition of the bail, Ortiz barred Singh from stepping foot in the airport again if he is able to post the $1,000 he needs for his release. He is due back in court Jan. 27.

“The court finds these facts and circumstances quite shocking for the alleged period of time that this occurred,” the judge said. “Being in a secured part of the airport under a fake ID badge allegedly, 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.”

How does this happen? How does a man go undetected for 3 months? Leave a comment in the section below.