Man claims airport trespassing was misunderstanding

The man accused of causing a security scare at Newark Liberty International Airport last week is telling his side of the story to News 12 New Jersey. Port Authority police charged Michael DeMarco with

News 12 Staff

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Sep 15, 2015, 12:11 AM

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Updated 3,334 days ago

The man accused of causing a security scare at Newark Liberty International Airport last week is telling his side of the story to News 12 New Jersey.

Port Authority police charged Michael DeMarco with trespassing after he allegedly made his way through a secure door and onto the jetway of a United Airlines gate.

DeMarco, who is from Massachusetts, was in Newark on a layover on his way to Florida. He tells News 12 New Jersey that he was rushing to make his connecting flight and found the door was already locked.

"I was late, I ran through the door, totally by accident," DeMarco says. "I was just trying to get on my flight and get to Florida."

When the incident first occurred, a spokesperson for the Port Authority police told media outlets that DeMarco had been drinking. However, DeMarco says that it sounds worse than it was.

"I admitted to [investigators] that I had two beers at the airport bar," he says. "I just think it's being portrayed as if I was drunk, and I'd like to clear that up. I was not. I was totally coherent."

DeMarco tells News 12 New Jersey that the sign on the door indicating it was secured was too small. He says that the whole incident was simply an accident.

DeMarco is expected to appear in court in New Jersey within the next two weeks.