Murder suspect steals plane before committing suicide (VIDEO)

GlobalPost

A man wanted for murder broke into a Utah airport hangar today, taxied an airplane through a fence and into the parking lot before shooting himself.

Brian Hedglin used a rug to scale razor wire at St. George Municipal Airport before gaining access to a 50-passenger CRJ200 operated by SkyWest, city spokesman Marc Mortensen told KSL.com.

"We have no idea," Mortensen said. "We don't know what his intent was. We don't know if he was going to take off or run it into the ground. There was no note."

The 40-year-old Colorado Springs, Colo., native worked at SkyWest Airline, but was on administrative leave, the company said.

Hedglin was also a member of the Colorado Army National Guard.

Police wanted the pilot for questioning related to Friday’s stabbing of his girlfriend, Christina Cornejo, in Colorado Springs, CNN said.

The plane was empty and no passengers were ever in danger, according to CNN.

“It is important to note there is no ongoing public safety issue, and the scene is under the control of law enforcement,” FBI Agent Debbie D. Bertram said, CNN reported.

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In an effort to flush him from hiding, SkyWest had cancelled Hedglin’s security cards.

“SkyWest Airlines has confirmed that a SkyWest employee was involved in a ground incident with an aircraft at St. George Municipal Airport,” the airline’s statement said. “The aircraft did sustain damage; the extent of the damage is currently being inspected by our maintenance and safety professionals.”

Police first noticed an abandoned motorcycle near a fence before spotting the rug.

The incident happened about 12:50 am and caused “several hundred thousand dollars” damage, the LA Times reported.

Hedglin clipped the plane’s wing on a building before it hit parked cars.

The FBI and Transportation Security Administration are helping local police with the case.

The airport was temporarily closed while SkyWest diverted flights to Cedar City, Utah.

SkyWest flies to Salt Lake City and Los Angeles for Delta Connection and United Express from St. George, a city of 73,000 in southern Utah.

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