Article content

An intruder managed to break into German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s jet at Cologne Airport for several hours last month, playing around with buttons in the cockpit, activating the escape slide and using fire extinguishers before police put an end to his escapades.

The incident took place the evening of July 25 and the case is still being investigated, a spokesman for Germany’s air force said Tuesday. Merkel was not in Cologne during the incident, he said.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Bodybuilder high on drugs breaks into Angela Merkel's jet, dances around in his underwear for hours: reports Back to video

He may not fully be held responsible for his acts

“The man probably got onto the airfield because there was construction and that’s why the alarm system was turned off,” said the air force official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with department policy. “He then pulled down the jet engine’s cover, climbed up and entered the plane through its emergency exit.”

The intruder, a 24-year-old bodybuilder whose name was only given as Volkan T., somehow pressed an alarm button in the cockpit, which is how police were alerted to the incident. When he refused to leave the plane, police entered with dogs and he was bitten twice in the leg before they could overpower him, the German news agency dpa reported.