A Tupelo, Mississippi man accused of stealing a aircraft and threatening to crash it into an area Walmart has landed in Ashland and been taken into custody. The aircraft is reportedly intact.
Suspect Cory Patterson is alleged by officers to have labored for a fixed-base operator on the Tupelo Regional Airport.
At round 5 a.m. Saturday morning, 911 operators in Tupelo obtained a name from the aircraft, already airborne, threatening to crash into the city’s Walmart. The shop and surrounding space have been evacuated.
Leslie Criss, a Tupelo resident, advised the Related Press that “I’ve by no means seen something like this on this city. It’s a scary solution to get up on a Saturday morning.”
The aircraft continued to fly over the succeeding hours. At 8:12 a.m, authorities reported the aircraft was flying over the Toyota plant in Blue Springs, Mississippi.
It was round 9:43 a.m. that legislation enforcement recognized the suspect as Cory Patterson.
Mr. Patterson posted on Fb Saturday morning that “‘Sorry everybody. By no means truly wished to harm anybody. I like my dad and mom and sister, this isn’t your fault. Goodbye,’” in accordance with the Northeast Mississippi Every day Journal.
By 10:23 a.m, the aircraft had landed in Ashland, Mississippi, and Mr. Patterson was within the custody of the Benton County Sheriff’s Division as of 10:35 a.m.
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves confirmed the aircraft was down on Twitter.
The aircraft over North MS is down. Grateful the scenario has been resolved and that nobody was injured. Thanks most of all to native, state, and federal legislation enforcement who managed this example with excessive professionalism.
— Governor Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) September 3, 2022
