By David Cruz
Security breaches at Newark Liberty International Airport have raised alarms among lawmakers, who are calling for stricter oversight and a review of security procedures at airports across the country. The latest incident involved a man who had been working as a security supervisor for 20 years with a stolen identity.
It’s hard to miss the blue-shirted TSA employees at Newark Liberty. They are seemingly everywhere you look, but they’re not the only ones watching your back at the airport. There are a number of security contractors working here, including New York-based FJC Security Services, for whom the guard, known to officials as Jerry Thomas, worked.
Fifty-four-year-old Elizabeth resident Bimbo Oyewole, in the country illegally officials say, pleaded not guilty to second-degree identity theft today. A spokesperson for FJC said that the company had inherited Oyewole from a previous contractor and that he had passed a number of security checks, including by state police and U.S. Customs. Police say the real Jerry Thomas was killed in 1992 and they’re investigating whether Oyewole had any role in the murder.
NJ Today spoke to a few TSA employees off-camera, including a supervisor, who wanted to make clear that the guard at the center of the latest security breach was not a TSA employee. “We need the public to have faith in what we do,” one said.
And in Terminal B at Newark Liberty, passengers seemed unfazed by the latest security breach.
“Maybe a little bit, but it’s just one guy and I think, overall, the system works pretty well,” said Lauren Gabel, traveling through Terminal B after a flight arriving from Ohio.
Daniel Huber, who flies regularly, said he hasn’t had any concerns about security. “It’s going to happen in a small, semi-regular basis, but I feel safe flying these days,” he said.
The Port Authority, which operates the area’s three airports, said it’s cooperating with investigators and is doing its best to ensure passenger safety. A recent federal report found that security breaches at major airports were under-reported, prompting calls by New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg for a review of airport security procedures. Tomorrow, the House Homeland Security Committee will hold a hearing on the issue, at which time they expect to hear from Homeland Security’s acting inspector general, whose office produced the report.
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