Just plane stalkerish.
A creepy guy followed a Georgia mother and daughter into an airport bathroom in Washington, DC then onto a Delta flight without a valid boarding pass — prompting crew members to kick him off the plane and delaying takeoff, authorities said.
Lauren Benton noticed a disturbed man trailing her family — including her two children ages 6 and 9 — near their gate at Washington Dulles International Airport as they prepared to fly home Aug. 2, she told USA Today.
“My heart sunk down into my stomach,” Benton said. “With our children we were trying to create the perception that they were safe at all times.”
She became even more frightened when the guy followed her and her young daughter into the women’s restroom, she said.
The man, who was not identified in the report, continued to follow them onto the plane during early boarding, then sat down in the row next to them, she said.
Her kids became nervous, so she reported the situation to a flight attendant — who learned the guy had a boarding pass for a different Delta flight the same day, the outlet reported.
The creep was escorted off the flight and the plane was evacuated to perform a security sweep, which took nearly two hours, Benton said.
The terrified mom was baffled by the stunning security lapse.
“We live in this post 9/11 era and people think something like this is not possible and it’s completely possible,” she said. “Individuals that belong on the plane should only have been allowed on the plane. I would like to know how this occurred.”
The man appeared to have mental health issues and had passed through the airport checkpoint with a valid ID, according to TSA and other authorities. He was not charged with a crime.
“I have empathy toward the mental health crisis that we have in the United States, but I will not allow mental health to be used as an excuse for the [compromising] of my family’s safety,” Benton said.
Delta said it’s investigating the incident to determine how the man was able to get on the plane without a valid boarding pass for that specific flight.
“Delta has processes in place for gate agents and flight crews to verify that individuals onboard aircraft prior to departure are customers that are booked on that particular flight,” the airline said in a statement.
“Delta is reviewing the matter in question internally and has been in touch with airport authorities in conjunction with this review.”
