Man Arrested After Sneaking onto JetBlue Plane at Fort Lauderdale Airport

A 32‑year‑old man, identified as Sammuel Prescott Lackey, scaled an eight‑foot fence with barbed wire at Fort Lauderdale‑Hollywood International Airport on the night of August 1, 2026. He entered the secured JetScape maintenance area, used portable stairs to board a parked 2021 JetBlue Airbus A320, and hid in the aircraft’s lavatory.

During a routine inspection on the morning of August 2, maintenance staff discovered the intruder, forcing the plane to remain grounded and delaying its scheduled move. The interruption cost JetBlue roughly $2,400 in labor and service disruption. Lackey was arrested and charged with unarmed burglary of an unoccupied conveyance, criminal mischief, and trespassing on critical infrastructure. The FBI and Transportation Security Administration opened investigations into the security breach.