Some witnesses say they saw a naked man at Hartsfield Jackson Airport for 20 minutes or more before Atlanta police arrived. Officers say it was not that long and they got to 23-year-old Derrick Weems as fast as they could.
WSB-TV reporter Tom Jones received new video of the incident Friday. The man who shot it told Jones he thought his eyes were deceiving him. (Source: WSB-TV)
Gregory Evans said there was no panic and Delta Gate agents didn't seem bothered of the incident. He said it took police too long to get to Weems and once they did, they did not move passengers from the area.
"They were acting like there was no naked guy standing 10 feet away from them. Like they go through this all the time," Evans said via Skpe.
Evans said after he arrived at Delta Gate 21 for his flight to Los Angeles Thursday morning, he saw Weems standing near the gate nude and acting like nothing was out of the ordinary.
Evans told Jones that Delta agents were going about their business as if the naked man wasn’t there.
"I was like, 'Am I the only person who sees this guy standing there?'" Evans said.
He said police eventually arrived and used a taser to subdue Weems after he started jumping, flapping his arms and screaming.
Atlanta police say that's not true. A spokesman sent a computer-aided dispatch log called CADS showing police got the call at 6:40, and the first officer arrived at 6:47.
The spokesperson told Jones six officers had the situation under control, so there was no need to move anyone away.
Officers say no one was injured and this incident was resolved without much interruption.
Weems was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. He was taken to a hospital for a mental evaluation and was later released.
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