"Stowaway Obsession" 60-Year-Old Grandmother Secretly Boards Plane... 22nd Time Caught as Repeat Offender

Attorney: "Obsession with Secretly Boarding Airplanes"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-ju] A woman in her 60s in the United States, who habitually sneaks onto airplanes and has baffled U.S. aviation security authorities, was caught again at an airport.

The Cook County Sheriff's Office announced on the 18th (local time) that Marilyn Hartman (69), a habitual unauthorized boarding offender, was arrested at Chicago O'Hare International Airport on the 16th. This is already the 22nd time Hartman has been caught for unauthorized boarding, stowaway attempts, and violating airport access bans.

Authorities explained, "We received a report that Hartman left a designated facility without approval during her probation period. By tracking her electronic monitoring device, we confirmed that she headed to the airport where a restraining order was in place."

On the same day, at around 1:38 PM, Hartman was arrested near Terminal 1 of O'Hare Airport and was incarcerated at Cook County Jail.

Hartman had recently stated in a local broadcast interview that she would no longer engage in illegal boarding, but just days later, she violated bail conditions and committed the same offense again. Her attorney said, "After the broadcast aired, Hartman's emotional state became extremely unstable," adding, "It may have reignited her obsession with sneaking onto airplanes."

Hartman's motives remain unclear, but it is known that she lived in Chicago until about ten years ago and has since become homeless. Her first unauthorized boarding attempt was in February 2014 at San Francisco Airport, where she passed through security and boarded a flight to Hawaii. She was caught after taking a seat when the rightful seat owner appeared.

Two months later, in August 2014, she successfully sneaked onto a plane at San Jose International Airport. However, she was caught at Los Angeles Airport and received a suspended sentence. She was also charged with fraud and trespassing after staying at a hotel near the airport under someone else's name.

The court set Hartman's bail at $100,000 (approximately 110 million KRW) on the 18th for her violations. She was denied parole for violating bail conditions. Hartman is scheduled to appear in court again on the 22nd.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.