33-Year-Old Man Strips Naked, Attempts To Board Taxiing Aircraft After Climbing Onto Wing

An Illinois man allegedly attempted to board a taxiing plane during take-off by climbing onto the wing of the aircraft at Midway International airport in Chicago.

The 33-year-old man was charged with a felony count of trespassing Thursday, prosecutors said.

The suspect, identified as Javier Martinez, entered the runway of Midway airport Tuesday afternoon by jumping over the barbed-wire fence protecting it. According to Assistant State's Attorney Sean Kelly, Martinez parked his car at West 55th Street and managed to climb up the fence, which is about 10 to 12 feet high.

He was later seen walking on the runway toward the private jet after removing his clothes and climbing onto the plane's wing while attempting to open its side door, CBS News reported.

However, an airport supervisor and the plane's first mate who exited the aircraft managed to get hold of Martinez and held him on the ground until he was taken into custody by the airport security. The aircraft was eventually allowed to take off.

Martinez suffered injuries across his body from the barbed wire but no one else was injured in the incident. The police apprehended Martinez and took him to Loyola Medicine MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn for a mental evaluation where he was hospitalized, according to the outlet.

The man reportedly suffers from mental illness and lives with his parents "to make sure things like this don’t happen," his attorney Vincent Luisi said.

Although Martinez's attorney requested his client to be released without paying any money. The judge, however, refused his request and set the bail at $250,000. In addition to the bail amount, Martinez is ordered to be placed on electronic monitoring after being released from custody, WTTW reported.

"I can only imagine that the people in that plane must have been terrified not knowing what this defendant was about to do. The court is very concerned about the safety of this defendant and the safety of the public," judge Maryam Ahmad said while refusing the request for a recognizance bond.

Martinez's next court hearing is scheduled for April 8.