Brian Hedglin (Courtesy of CNN)ST. GEORGE, UTAH (FOX5) -
An airline confirmed Tuesday that an employee who was on administrative leave tried to make off with an aircraft at a St. George, Utah airport before killing himself.
SkyWest Airlines confirmed details of a reported ground incident that involved a CRJ200 aircraft at the St. George Municipal Airport.
Although the company did not confirm the person's identity, KSTU-TV in Salt Lake City reported the person involved in the incident was Brian Hedglin of Colorado Springs, Colorado.
The FOX station said Hedglin had been wanted in connection to a death in his home state.
According to authorities, a person somehow gained access of the empty SkyWest jet early Tuesday morning at the airport. Upon attempting to taxi at the airport, the aircraft's left wing clipped a jet bridge and a terminal building.
Police spotted the plane and contacted SkyWest administrators. Technicians disabled the jet from the outside, KSTU reported.
With police closing in on the stalled plane, the person believed to have taken the jet reportedly died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot.
No other injuries were reported. The airline said no passengers were on board at the time.
SkyWest officials said an investigation is ongoing in the incident. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is also probing the attempted jet theft.
Commercial flights from the southern Utah airport were canceled indefinitely.
Stay tuned to FOX5 for the latest on this breaking news.
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