Illegal immigrant who worked security at US airport pleads not guilty to ID theft
NEWARK, N.J. - An illegal immigrant from Nigeria who allegedly used a murder victim's name to work as a security supervisor at a New Jersey airport the past 20 years pleaded not guilty Tuesday to identity theft.
Authorities say Bimbo Oyewole, 54, had been using the name of the victim of an unsolved 1992 murder in New York City so he could work at Newark Liberty International Airport. Prosecutors said he may have four or five other aliases.
His arrest Monday came the same day an unrelated federal report found that the Newark airport mishandled security breaches.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the area's main airports and other transit hubs, says Oyewole entered the United States illegally in 1989 and worked under several contractors at the airport.
A judge raised Oyewole 's bail from $75,000 to $250,000 Tuesday.
It wasn't immediately known how the personal information of the murder victim, Jerry Thomas, was acquired. Police in New York didn't say whether Oyewole was a suspect in his murder.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said Oyewole most recently worked under FJC Security Services and supervised about 30 guards. The agency said its investigation found no indication that Oyewole used the fake identity for any reason other than to live in the United States.
FJC Security, which received an airport contract in 2003, said it conducted a background check on the guard, as had New Jersey state police and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
"In all cases, he passed the background checks," FJC spokesman Michael McKeon said. "During his time with FJC, he had nothing in his record or his performance to indicate a cause for concern or a reason to question the state police and federal government's background checks."
A spokesman for Customs and Border Protection didn't immediately return a message seeking comment.
An airport employee who was familiar with Oyewole as Thomas said the private security guards he supervised are responsible for manning security checkpoints after passenger gates close for the evening and before they reopen in the morning. The guards also inspect delivery vehicles for possible unauthorized cargo, he said, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the matter.
___
Associated Press writers Samantha Henry in Newark and Bruce Shipkowski in Trenton contributed to this report.
