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Mother: Son missed flight, caused Detroit airport lockdown

Inside Detroit Metro Airport.
Steve Carmody
/
Michigan Radio

ROMULUS, Mich. -- The mother of an Arkansas man who caused a two-hour lockdown at Detroit Metropolitan Airport says he mistakenly re-entered a secure area after missing a flight this week to a basketball tryout.

Jennifer Smith of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, told The Associated Press on Saturday that 22-year-old Christian Smith's actions "were a complete misunderstanding."

Christian Smith was arrested Thursday night after exiting and going back into a secured side of a screening checkpoint at the airport in Romulus. The lockdown delayed flights at the McNamara Terminal.

Jennifer Smith says her 6-foot-7-inch son was cited and posted a $100 bond. She says he now is in Los Angeles where he hopes to latch on with a professional basketball team overseas.

Christian Smith played college basketball at Bacone College in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting.