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(CNN) – A Californian who “was afraid to go home because of Covid” lived undetected at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport for three months, according to multiple reports.
Aditya Udai Singh, 33, was arrested Saturday morning local time in O’Hare on charges of identity theft in a restricted area of the airport and theft under $ 500, the Department of Justice confirmed. Chicago police to CNN.
Singh was reportedly apprehended after being approached by two United Airlines employees who asked to see his ID. He then allegedly showed them an airport identification badge that belonged to an operations manager who reported it missing in late October.
Deputy State Attorney Kathleen Hagerty told the court Singh said he was ‘afraid to go home because of Covid’ and that other passengers provided him with food, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The generally busy Chicago O’Hare Airport has seen a sharp drop in passenger traffic due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Scott Olson / Getty Images
Cook County Judge Susana Ortiz expressed surprise at the unusual circumstances of the case, the newspaper reported.
“So if I understand you correctly,” Ortiz said, “you are telling me that an unauthorized, self-employed person reportedly lived in 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. “
Deputy Public Defender Courtney Smallwood told the court that Singh is a resident of the Los Angeles suburb of Orange and has no criminal history, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Singh’s bail has reportedly been set at $ 1,000, on condition that he does not return to O’Hare Airport, and he is due to return to court on January 27.
CNN has reached out to the Cook County State Attorney’s Office and the Chicago Department of Aviation for comment.
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