Authorities say a passenger who had just boarded a plane at a New Jersey airport opened the emergency exit and went down the slide.

Port Authority police say charges against 25-year-old Troy Fattun are pending. He was detained by airline staff and police moments after he reached the tarmac at Newark Liberty International airport.

The incident occurred around 10 p.m. Sunday on a United Airlines flight that was headed from Newark to Tampa, Florida. The flight was delayed for several hours and passengers eventually were put on another plane.

It wasn’t immediately clear why Fattun opened the emergency exit. It wasn’t known Monday if he had retained an attorney.

(AP)