A plane taking off from Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport ran over and killed an Armenian citizen who was in transit while being deported from Spain, Russian investigators have said.
Authorities said late on Tuesday that they were investigating the circumstances of the incident after a dead body was discovered on the airport runway. The Investigative Committee said the victim had been hit by the landing gear of an Athens-bound passenger jet.
Surveillance footage allegedly showed Albert Yepremyan, 25, breaking free and running onto the runway as passengers boarded the Boeing 737 aircraft, an unnamed airport official told Interfax Wednesday.
“The man went through the airport gate during boarding for a Moscow-Yerevan flight, went to the platform bus, but quickly headed toward the runway instead of getting in,” the official was quoted as saying.
“On [his] flight from Madrid, Mr. Yepremyan had started a fight,” the Sheremetyevo official told Interfax.
“After landing [in Moscow], police were called on board the plane to detain [him].”
Fuselage damage and human remains were discovered on the plane after it landed in the Greek capital, Interfax cited Athens International Airport authorities as saying.
“A decision was made to temporarily ground the airliner,” they added.
