Cops Corner Qualcomm Intruder

When a possibly intoxicated construction worker led San Diego police, a bomb-sniffing dog and Qualcomm Stadium security on a three-hour chase through the venue July 26th, stadium facilities director William Wilson wasted no time in coming up with a plan to prevent a recurrence.

“My background is security,” Wilson told Pollstar. “I was a cop for 27 years, I ran the Rose Bowl for three years, spent a year with the Olympics in 1984 and have been here ever since. Security has always been my thing.”

Wilson called a staff meeting the next day and tightened security on non-event days when construction workers are in the stadium, as they have been recently renovating skyboxes and club areas for the NFL’s San Diego Chargers.

That’s how Charles Homan, who allegedly evaded detainment for hours before finally being corned in a restroom, gained entrance to the stadium.

“This guy was a subcontractor; he was a worker for one of the companies. But he was also a bad guy,” Wilson said. “He was acting very suspiciously and our people noticed that and called security and said, ‘This guy’s acting kind of weird.'”

When security caught up with him in an area of the stadium he wasn’t working in, Homan allegedly bolted, prompting the call to police.

“Of course, we had a complete lockdown of the facility then – all tunnels, gates, doors, everything,” Wilson explained.

It took about three hours to track Homan down in the cavernous stadium, which was preparing to host the Street Scene music festival the next weekend.

“Finally, he dove into a restroom and decided he was going to be invisible, because he was a little high, we think. We found his work belt later up in the press level and there was a stolen car he was attributed to from Las Vegas. He was booked on two other warrants, so he was already wanted.”

Wilson has instituted a system in which workers will now have to check in with security and leave either a driver’s license or photo identification at the desk upon arrival.

“I was happy that my troops all jumped into the fray but we met the next day and I said, ‘Suppose this guy did have a bomb on him? Boom, you’re gone.’ We’d been pretty loose about all these contractors coming in,” Wilson said. “It was a pretty good wake up call.”

— Deborah Speer