Report: LaGuardia Airport Security Robot Is Creeping People Out, ‘Bothering People’

A robot security guard, which has been enlisted to roam around LaGuardia Airport in New York City, is creeping people out and “bothering” them, according to a report.

“The Port Authority is paying thousands of dollars every month renting a security robot to patrol LaGuardia Airport — but the bot is creeping out women while the crooks look on and laugh,” explained the New York Post. “The airport deployed the R2-D2-esque Knightscope K5 three months ago to roll around outside Terminal B, recording everything with its four cameras, microphones, and sensors.”

One female security guard complained that she had to push the robot away with a luggage cart, declaring, “It’s upsetting to have that thing creep up on you… It’s a pain in the ass. It keeps bothering people.”

She even accused male security guards of taking control of the robot to “get a better look” at her, while, according to the New York Post, other women at the airport have also been scared by the robot.

“It was coming right up to me, and at first, I was like, ‘What the freak is that?’” expressed one woman, with the robot reportedly “sat 10 inches away from her knee for a minute.”

Making situations even more creepy and awkward, when people get too close to the robot, it declares, “You are in my personal space.”

Though the robot it partially utilized to deter illegal taxi drivers, an airport security guard claimed, “They just laugh at it. They walk around the bot and take people into their cars. It’s a waste of money.”

“They could have renovated three of our bathrooms for the same money. We could have gotten some working sinks,” he continued, while one of the illegal taxi drivers, Mohammad, told the New York Post that he “didn’t even notice it,” and thought “it was sales.”

Last year, similar security robots were introduced in malls and other public areas.

However, one robot reportedly drowned itself in a nearby fountain, and after another robot was used to chase away homeless people, the homeless people started to beat it up and smear feces on the machine.