P.E.I. man pleads guilty to mischief, impaired driving in airport incident
Matthew David Joseph Carter will be sentenced next week
A P.E.I. man who drove into the runway areas of Charlottetown Airport has pleaded guilty to mischief and impaired driving.
Matthew David Joseph Carter, 35, broke through a padlock on the chain-link fence around the airport in July.
When police arrived, they got him to move his car away from the runway. A passenger plane was expected to land minutes later.
Safety and security is our number one priority.— Doug Newson, CEO, Charlottetown Airport Authority
Court heard Monday that police found a number of empty prescription pill bottles and some needles in the car when they arrested him.
He failed a drug test at the police station.
Carter's lawyer told the court his client has a serious addiction issue problem and is in the methadone program — but accidently took the wrong dose of medication that day.
The judge will sentence Carter next Monday.
Safety and security top priority
Airport officials credit police and airport staff for their quick action in averting what could have been a serious incident.
Doug Newson, CEO of the Charlottetown Airport Authority, said the airport has since increased patrols but added this type of incident is rare.
"Safety and security is our number one priority," said Newson.
"Nothing is 100 per cent preventable but obviously when an incident like this happens, we do an investigation and look at corrective actions to see what, if anything, could be done to enhance security around the airport."
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With files from Jessica Doria-Brown