Verne Troyer: LAX Police Taser Incident Recorded On Phone By Mini-Me Actor Of ‘Austin Powers’ Fame
An alarming incident, in which police deployed a taser weapon at LAX Airport in Los Angeles, was caught on video Wednesday morning by Verne Troyer, the 46-year-old actor best known for portraying the comical character “Mini-Me” in two installments of the Austin Powers movie trilogy, in 1999 and 2002.
“Was at LAX this morning for my flight and saw this go down. Crazy!” wrote Troyer on his YouTube page. The video that he captured on his smartphone can be viewed above.
According to media reports out of Los Angeles, a man who has not been publicly identified attempted to force his way through a Transportation Security Administration checkpoint in Terminal Six at the sprawling airport, without cooperating with TSA officers, as is required before entering the boarding area for flights.
Police arrived to assist the TSA officers, but the uncooperative man tried to push his way past a police officer as well.
“Airport police followed the man and detained him at Gate 66. As he was being taken into custody a use of force occurred involving a Taser,” said LAX Airport Police Spokesperson Sergeant Belinda Joseph.
The man’s motives for trying to force his way through the security checkpoint are not known, but the commotion caused by the disturbance alarmed travelers, and one witness, Sean Dimond, told ABC 7 in Los Angeles that the man “had a really strange smile on his face the entire time.”
The man actually held a ticket for a flight on Alaska Airlines, which is housed in LAX Terminal 6, the airline confirmed. But his flight was not scheduled to depart until 8 p.m., and the taser incident when the man confronted police took place around 11 a.m.
Security officials said that they inspected the man’s baggage and belongings, but they have not publicly revealed what, if anything, they found in that search. But police did say that the man was not armed when police finally swarmed and subdued him.
Verne Troyer may have reason to keep an eye on the activities of TSA agents. In June of last year, the actor posted a photo of himself on social media as TSA agents searched him in what appeared to be an aggressive fashion.
Troyer is known for his diminutive stature, the result of a congential dwarfism condition. In fact, at a height of just 2’8″, Troyer is not only the smallest man working regularly in films and television, he is one of the shortest men in the world.
By comparison, actor Peter Dinklage, who plays “The Imp” Tyrion Lannister on the hit HBO series Game of Thrones, towers over Troyer by almost two feet, at 4’5″ tall.
The man shot by a taser at LAX was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment, but Troyer apparently recovered the man’s hat.
