Man leaps onto runway at Newark airport

NEWARK, N.J. - A New York City man with a knife in his pocket jumped a barrier and ran onto the tarmac Saturday night at Newark Liberty International Airport before a police officer tackled him, authorities said.

Xiang Xun Shao, 39, of Manhattan, was charged with defiant trespass and a weapons offense and was undergoing a psychiatric evaluation at a nearby hospital.

Shao was initially seen walking near a gate where vehicles enter the tarmac area, said a spokeswoman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs the airport. He then jumped over a retractable metal barrier and ran onto the tarmac before being caught near Terminal C, the spokesman said. - AP