Photos released by Denver police show a man hopping over an airport fence in a bid to steal an airplane in order to fly to a Hawaii vacation.
The incident took place at Centennial Airport in Denver, Colorado, when the suspect, identified as Sterlin Love from Colorado Springs, allegedly accessed the airport runway while a Gulfstream jet was taxiing and attempted to board it.
But the crew did not let him in — and with good reason. According to the local sheriff’s office, he was allegedly planning to steal the jet so that he could fly to Hawaii.
“Life is not a video game,” police said. The man was promptly arrested.
In one of the images, a Denver Police Department helicopter can be seen monitoring the suspect until officers on the ground could apprehend him.
Love faces charges of first-degree aggravated motor vehicle theft and second-degree criminal trespass, according to the local sheriff’s office.
“We’ve all been at the point where we needed a vacation, but this took it a little far… note to self… video games are not real… stealing a jet will not go well,” Douglas County sheriff’s office said on social media along with images of the failed plane jacking.
So far in 2021, there have been three confirmed aviation hijackings, according to the Flight Safety Foundation.
Hijackings have steadily declined due to increased security measures following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the United States. Since then, the number of aircraft hijackings globally per year has ranged from zero to 11; 2015 was the first year that saw zero hijackings since 1957.
But this incident in Colorado is not a first — even for this month. On Jul. 7, Jaden Lake-Kameroff, 18, grabbed the flight controls of a Ryan Air Cessna 208 Caravan transporting six people. The flight was scheduled to approach the Aniak Airport in Alaska when Lake-Kameroff asked the pilot if he could try to fly the aircraft or sit in the co-pilot chair. Both of his requests were denied, but he managed to grab the yoke and sent the plane into a nosedive.
The pilot was able to push him away and passengers restrained him as the pilot regained control of the aircraft. While no injuries were reported, it was an attempted murder-suicide, according to Alaska State Troopers. He was charged with multiple counts of assault and terroristic threats.
The first U.S. aircraft hijacking was recorded in 1961 when a National Airlines plane from Miami to Key West was diverted to Cuba.
Edited by Izzy Angeli and Kristen Butler
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