Earlier this week, a man broke through the Transportation Security Administration checkpoint at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and attacked several agents.
Thursday evening, authorities released surveillance footage showing the incident. The man, who has since been identified as Tyrese Garner, 19, of Texas, runs through the metal detector, knocks over a TSA agent, attempts to punch another agent (who dodges), before punching another agent twice. Finally, a group of agents and members of the Phoenix Police Department tackle the man.
ABC News reported the man “had to be subdued and was arrested.”
“He was charged with one felony count each of criminal trespassing and resisting arrest, as well as five counts of misdemeanor assault,” the outlet reported.
WATCH:
One agent had to go to the hospital due to his injuries, while four others went to urgent care. They have since been released, ABC reported.
CNN reported the attack took place around 9:45 a.m. Tuesday. In a statement to news outlets, TSA spokeswoman Lorie Dankers called the attack “unprovoked and brazen.”
“This unprovoked and brazen physical attack against our employees is unacceptable,” she said. “We are grateful for our committed workforce and for the role they play in protecting the traveling public every day. We continue to monitor the safety and health of the TSOs involved in this incident and will cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation.”
Garner is due in court Tuesday. It is still unknown why he attacked the agents.
While the video is disturbing, it shows TSA agents handling a security threat, something the agency is regularly criticized for failing to do.
Americans typically think of TSA as the most annoying part of going to the airport. In March, President Donald Trump reacted to a video of a TSA agent aggressively patting down a disabled boy. In January, the agency admitted a passenger carrying a firearm at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
In September 2016, left-wing outlet Vox wrote about two studies from the same authors that showed TSA’s onerous screening procedures not only failed to identify firearms and bombs (sent through the scanners as part of a Department of Homeland Security study) but also led to more people eschewing airports and driving, which purportedly has led to more vehicle deaths.
Of course, once Trump became president, Vox changed its tune, now claiming TSA is the only thing standing between America and another terrorist attack.