NEW YORK — Stadium security was bulked up for Wednesday night’s matches at the U.S. Open, a day after a man was arrested for running onto the court to kiss Rafael Nadal.
The total number of on-court private security personnel – guards and supervisors – was being increased from six to nine because of what happened Tuesday night.
Prosecutors said Noam U. Aorta of New York City dashed out of the stands at Arthur Ashe Stadium after Nadal’s fourth-round win, then hugged and kissed the Spanish star as he was changing shirts on the sideline.
Aorta will be charged with trespassing and faces possible jail time if convicted, prosecutors said.
“There was a breakdown,” U.S. Open spokesman Chris Widmaier said.
Nadal, for his part, laughed off the episode, saying: “For me, it wasn’t a problem. The guy was really nice. He said, ‘I love you,’ and he kissed me.”
District Attorney Richard Brown, however, called it “particularly disturbing” because Aorta made physical contact with Nadal. Brown noted that Monica Seles was stabbed in the back in 1993 by a spectator on a tennis court in Hamburg, Germany.
Aorta, 23, of Queens, will be charged with third-degree criminal trespass and interfering with a professional sporting event, prosecutors said. If convicted, he faces a maximum one year in jail and $5,000 in fines.
Attorney information for Aorta wasn’t immediately available.