Edith Vega told authorities that she looked away from her son “for one second” while trying to print out her boarding pass at a Spirit Airlines kiosk Monday before he disappeared from her sight.
Video footage from the airport shows the toddler, who was born in 2016, climbing onto the moving conveyor belt and being pushed through the belt line’s aperture in the wall alongside a black and yellow bag. At one point in the video, a woman wearing a backpack, presumably the toddler’s mother, can be seen running to the counter, and a Spirit Airline employee then halts the belt.
"He just went a long ride away, I couldn't even catch up," Vega told WSB. "I wanted to jump in and try to go get him, but they didn't allow me."
The toddler eventually reached a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) baggage area, where agents saw him and removed him from the belt. According to an Atlanta police report, the child had a “severely swollen and bruised” right hand and was taken to be treated at a local hospital.
"Spirit Airlines is aware of an incident at Hartsfield-Jackson International in which an unattended child passed by a section of our ticket counter that was not staffed or open at the time," the airline said in a statement. "The child was able to access a back baggage area via a bag belt and sustained some injuries. We are currently working with TSA and airport officials to ensure all protocol was followed. We wish the child the best in their recovery."
