Ok, I have a big problem with this. Nobody has mentioned the fact that the gate agents for this flight should have never let Mark Rimkufski on the airplane, even if he had an Air Marshal badge. The gate agents have a list of who is supposed to be on the flight…even a crew list. So, even as a FA or pilot, you have to be on the working crew list to get down the jet way! So, how does a guy who’s badge say’s “Fisher Island Police” get by them? Are the gate agents being held responsible? I haven’t heard anything about that. Also, I have disagree with Matt Phillips. I don’t respect the guys efforts and still wonder why he wasn’t arrested immediately?

As copied from the Wall Street Journal:

Man Pretends to Be Air Marshal in Bid to Make Flight

Here’s an innovative approach to catching a flight when you’re running late.

Police say Mark Rimkufski persuaded airline employees at a closed gate to let him on the plane by flashing a badge and claiming he was a Federal Air Marshal, the Miami Herald reports. Once he was on board the flight, Rimkufski, was — unfortunately — confronted by actual air marshals, who quickly determined from the badge that he was not one of them. (By the way, the badge said “Fisher Island Chief of Police.” Fisher Island is a small island near Miami.)

After being asked to leave American Airlines Flight 299 which was set to fly from Miami to Los Angeles, Rimkufski did not avail himself of the opportunity to leave the airport. Instead, he opted to duck into American Airlines’ Admirals Club, where he loudly complained about not being allowed aboard the flight and was, eventually, placed under arrest.

The Herald reports: “Rimkufski, 49, was charged with impersonating a law-enforcement officer. He was scheduled to appear in Miami-Dade court Thursday but did not because he was hospitalized for unspecified reasons. There is no Fisher Island police department.”

Still, you have to respect the guy’s effort.