Share
News

Two DC Airport Workers Arrested Over Plane Crash Footage

Share

Two airport employees have been arrested in connection with what officials said was an unauthorized release of video of last week’s fatal plane crash over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C.

The footage showing the collision between an Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines passenger jet was leaked to CNN, according to WTTG-TV.

Mohamed Lamine Mbengue, 21, of Rockville, Maryland, was arrested Friday on a charge of computer trespass, according to the report.

Jonathan Savoy, 45, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, was arrested Sunday. He was also charged with computer trespass.

Both are employees of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, according to USA Today.

Mbengue was released on his own recognizance from the Arlington County Adult Detention Center, according to radio station WTOP.

Savoy was released on a summons by a magistrate.

Mbengue was originally scheduled to be arraigned on the charge Monday, but the court hearing was continued.

Savoy’s court date was not known.

CNN aired the video Friday, commenting that it appeared to be “surveillance video from the airport.”

CNN’s Kate Bolduan said on the broadcast that the station had exclusively obtained two videos that provided “a more direct angle and vantage point” of the midair collision.



Related:
New Video Shows the Moment Delta Plane Flipped Upside Down and Burst Into Flames

WTOP quoted a police statement as saying the two airport employees were “charged in connection with making an unauthorized copy of Airports Authority records.”

Computer trespass is a Class 1 misdemeanor in Virginia.

The crash claimed the lives of 67 people, making it the country’s deadliest crash in over 20 years, according to USA Today.

Three of the dead were aboard the Army helicopter.

The remaining 64 were aboard the jet liner, which originated in Wichita, Kansas, and was landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Washington, D.C.

Truth and Accuracy

Submit a Correction →



We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

Tags:
, , , , ,
Share
Lorri Wickenhauser has worked at news organizations in California and Arizona. She joined The Western Journal in 2021.
Lorri Wickenhauser has worked at news organizations in California and Arizona. She joined The Western Journal in 2021.




Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.

Conversation