An unarmed man died after running past a TSA security checkpoint at the commuter terminal of the Honolulu International Airport early Saturday morning.
The man, who was in his 40s and did not have a ticket, pushed a security official and forced his way through the exit lane of the security checkpoint, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported. He then ran out through doors that led to the airport operations area, where airplanes are parked.
Mahealani Richardson, a reporter for Hawaii News Now who was at the airport at the time of the incident, described the man as “crazed” and said he was making a lot of noise as he ran through the airport.
“All of a sudden this man, a very large man, ran through the terminal and started ramming himself through the doors,” Richardson told Hawaii News Now. “He looked like he was trying to get out to the runway where the planes are.”
After the man ran out into the secured area, security officers detained him and a struggle ensued. While in custody, the man was combative and became unresponsive, according to Department of Transportation spokesperson Tim Sakahara.
Emergency responders initiated life-saving measures and then took him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. DOT officials said the man was not armed with a weapon, according to local news station KITV.
“It was really scary during those moments, we had no idea what was going on,” Richardson told Hawaii News Now. “We just had to duck down and cover ourselves because we didn’t know if the suspect was going to come at us. We had to protect ourselves.”
A security officer was injured during the incident and was treated at a hospital.
The Honolulu Police Department is investigating the incident as an unattended death. Authorities have not released the man’s name.
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