Minneapolis airport police seek Delta intruder carrying leopard-print stuffed animal

The leopard-print stuffed animal he carried sounds odd, even amusing, but Minneapolis airport police say they're looking for an unidentified man, and the toy, who was seen prowling around Delta Airlines' Building C at about 9 p.m. Tuesday.

The building runs alongside 34th Avenue South -- the main approach to the Lindbergh and Humphrey terminals from I-494 -- across from Fort Snelling National Cemetery. It houses administration offices for Delta and sits on the public side of the airport, meaning no security checks are required to enter the building, according to airport spokesman Pat Hogan. No airport operations were impacted by the incident, although airport police have ramped up their patrols in search of the man.

According to airport police, the man entered the building and was confronted by a Delta employee who asked to see his badge. The man responded by holding out the stuffed animal and saying, "This is all you need to see," and fled. TSA officials were notified and a search was started, but there's no sign of the man so far.

The man was described as a black male, approximately 19 to 22 years old, with an average build and standing about 5'6 to 5'8 inches tall. He was wearing a tan oversized jacket and a red shirt.

Police say they don't think the man got into an adjoining hangar, but airport canine explosives detection teams were brought in to check the aircraft before they left the hangar. No explosives were found.

Last month, the airport went on lockdown when a bomb-sniffing dog sat down in front of a ratty pink bag on a carousel used by Continental Airlines. The alert, which turned out to be a false alarm, set off a chain of events that ended in massive delays and a cost to airlines at the Lindbergh Terminal of more than $1 million.

Here's a map of Building C:

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