COVID-19: Man arrested for living at airport for 3 months due to coronavirus fear

A 36-year-old Indian-origin man was arrested in the United States for living at Chicago's international airport for almost three months. The man said that he stayed at the airport for three months because he was too scared to fly due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Aditya Singh, a resident of Los Angeles, California, was held by airport authorities on Saturday and charged with impersonation in a restricted area of the airport and theft of less than $500 (approximately Rs 36,600). Singh was allegedly hiding in a secure area at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport since October 19, 20202.

The accused lives with his roommates in the Los Angeles suburb of Orange and has a master's degree in hospitality and is unemployed. However, Singh does not have any criminal record from the past. Singh survived at the airport with help from passengers who provided him with food.

As per the report from Chicago Tribune, Singh has been charged with felony criminal trespass to a restricted area of an airport and misdemeanor theft.

During the hearing, Judge Susana Ortiz expressed surprise at the unusual circumstances of the case and said "So if I understand you correctly, you're telling me that an unauthorized, non-employee individual was allegedly living within a secure part of the O'Hare airport terminal from October 19, 2020, to January 16, 2021, and was not detected?. I want to understand you correctly."

Judge Ortiz, further said that Singh's alleged actions were serious. "The court finds these facts and circumstances quite shocking for the alleged 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 secure so that people feel safe to travel, I do find those alleged actions do make him a danger to the community," Law Officer quoted her as saying.