A man who spent three months living in an airport terminal has been acquitted of trespassing charges.
Aditya Singh, 37, made himself at home in a secured area of a terminal at Chicago O'Hare International Airport from October 2020 to January 2021.
Having flown from LA to Chicago, he was due to catch an onward flight to India.
But instead he stayed put, later telling authorities he was “scared to go home due to Covid”.
Other passengers had reportedly been giving him food during his prolonged stay.
Singh was apprehended on 16 January 2021 after two United Airlines employees noticed he was using an airport worker’s lost ID badge to gain access to a secure area.
He was arrested and charged with criminal trespass to a restricted area of an airport and theft, reported the Chicago Tribune.
Cook County Judge Adrienne Davis acquitted Singh on the charge of trespassing earlier this week.
The Transportation Security Administration had already determined that he hadn’t violated airport regulations.
“Mr Singh did not breach or improperly enter secured areas – he arrived there like tens of thousands of arriving passengers do every day, by stepping off a plane,” said a spokesperson.
“While we won’t speculate on Mr Singh’s motivations, he decided to remain in the secure area and made every effort to blend in as a passenger and airline employee until his arrest.”
Originally from India, Singh, who has a masters degree in hospitality, had been living in Orange, California, and looking after a friend’s elderly relative.
Friends reported that he was living at the airport as a “spiritual awakening of sorts”, with one sharing a text message Singh had sent her with the Chicago Tribune: “I'm actually growing spiritually due to this experience and I know I will come out stronger,” it read.
