A 30-year-old man from Stoughton is facing charges of trespassing and breaking and entering after police reported that he was found cooking dinner inside a secure area of the Martha’s Vineyard Airport, along with his dog, earlier this month.
According to police, at approximately 9:40 pm, the airport’s nighttime employee reported an unauthorized individual, later identified to be Edward S. Pratt, was using the Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) building’s pantry to prepare himself mac and cheese, hot pockets, and popcorn.
In an Edgartown Police Report, the staffer said he mistook Pratt for a summer worker but quickly realized he did not recognize him and contacted authorities.
In the report, Edgartown officers responded to the scene, locating Pratt in the short-term parking lot. Pratt claimed he entered the secure airfield through a malfunctioning General Aviation (GA) luggage gate; the building door was open due to being caught on a rug, police reported. Pratt said he was admiring the facilities when the gate “just opened up in front of him,” according to the police report.
In the report, Geoff Freeman, the airports director and security coordinator, said he also observed Pratt driving around in a Ford Escape within the Security Identification Display Area (SIDA) of the Martha’s Vineyard Airport on security cameras the following day and that he would notify Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
Inside the Ford Escape, Edgartown officers recovered a vape, glasses case holder, a fidget spinner, and a wallet all belonging to Pratt.
Police estimated that Pratt was inside the off-limits area of the airport for approximately two hours.
Pratt is scheduled for a pretrial hearing Monday, Aug. 25 by zoom.
Lock him up. Atrocious!