doug hughes grew up in santa cruz and the son of janet hughes, a local politician in 1970s. his mother leaned to right in politics hughes is getting positive attention from liberals for his stunt. lauren make spoke to him as soon has he got back home. >> i told you it would be fun. >> reporter: doug hughes is back at home where he's been ordered to stay after flying his gyro plane into washington, d.c. >> one single pass up the mall and took it right up to where i intended to land. >> reporter: he made it to the grounds of the u.s. capitol causing a national stir but describing a different view from the air. >> people were not frightened at all. they looked at it and people waved at me. >> reporter: the stunt, though sent shockwaves across the country over d.c.'s security. if he could do it, who else could? >> we need to be worried not about whether or not somebody can fly into d.c. we need to be worried about the pile of money that's going into

we begin today's show with doug hughes, the u.s. mail man who made headlines when he flew a helicopter known as the gyrocopter onto the u.s. capitol lawn in an active civil disobedience. the letter began with a quote from john kerry farewell speech to the senate. "the unending chase for money, i believe, threatens to steal our democracy itself." hughes flew about an hour from maryland into restricted airspace and onto the capitol's west lawn, stunning authorities and bystanders. homeland security secretary jeh johnson said hughes literally flew below the radar, going undetected, before landing on the capitol lawn. before taking off, hughes had spoken about his plans to the "tampa bay times." doug: i am going to violate the no-fly zone, nonviolently, for no one to get hurt, and i'm going to land on the capitol lawn in front of the capitol building. i will have 535 letters strapped to the landing gear, and those letters are going to be addressed to every member of congress. i do not believe that the authorities are going to shoot down

doug hughes was released from custody yesterday, but still faces prison time for breaching the no-fly zone in the capitol. tom is live with what his wife is saying about all of this. tom: she's got a lot to say and you'll hear more from her in a moment. it's been two days since doug hughes flew in over the mall, kept going, landed on the west lawn of the capitol. we haven't heard much from him since then but his wife has a lot to say. >> i think he a patriot and i proud of him. tom: that's alena hughes, the wife of the gyrocopter pilot calling her husband a patriot. alena is from belarus and married doug 13 days ago. she spoke with reporters while sitting next to her lawyer. >> my reaction, it's difficult to explain my reaction. i was shock. my hands shake. tom: after driving his gyrocopter up from the couple's home in florida, on wednesday doug hughes took off from an airport in gettysburg, flew into d.c.'s restricted airspace and landed on the west lawn of capitol. he said he wanted to deliver letters to members of congress asking for campaign finance reform. alena says she supports

pilot doug hughes previously announced he intended to fly into restricted air space. as a result, he faces federal charges for violating national defense air space and operating an unregistered aircraft. if convicted, he could be punished by up to four years in prison. in court today, hughes was ordered released on his own recognizance with conditions. he will be held in home detention in tampa florida. he is prohibited from flying any aircraft and must stay away from the capitol and the white house. hughes previously said he was delivering 535 letters to congress protesting campaign financing and government corruption. his dramatic demonstration prompt a torrent of tweets, critical and supportive. this one says doug hughes is my personal hero. fantastic display of civil disobedience. bravo. i was here to see it. there was this ominous message. doug hughes may have unknowingly revealed one of the biggest security breaches in washington, d.c., since edward snowden. now, his will be restricted to his home in tampa, florida, allowed to return to the district of columbia

doug hughes is his name. there he is. he had been planning the stunt aimed at drawing attention to campaign finance reform and planning this for well over a year. >> i'm going to violate the no-fly zone nonviolently. nobody to get hurt. and i'm going to land on the capitol mall in front of the capitol building. >> his gyrocopter was removed after it was checked out by a bomb squad. he was arrested without incident. charges now ending. many are now wondering how he was able to get so close to the capitol without being detected. >> now to an investigation. investors from overseas told they could get a fast track to a green card for a price. behind the scheme a man with close ties to the white house. here's abc's brian ross. >> reporter: it was pitched with great fanfare as a way to help new orleans recover. in this promotional video, investors overseas were told their money would go primarily for a multimillion dollar hotel and conference center that would create scores of new jobs. >> the number one concern of this investm

mostal worker doug hughes flew into d.c. air space undetebted and he says he was out to make a political statement but in doing so he exposed major security issues. karen travers live now with more. >> reporter: good evening monica, doug hughes did not answer any questions after he left his court appearance here in washington, he just smiled as he walked away with his attorney the secret service said they had no advanced notice that doug hughes planned to fly the gyro copter up to the u.s. capitol. >> he is charged with violating restricted air space and flying an unregistered aircraft. he appeared in court in washington as questions are mounting and how he could get his copter around the no-fly zone around the nation's capital. they say it was too small too slow and too quiet to be detected. hughes told friends and family he wanted to deliver letters to lawmakers to demand changes in campaign laws. he told secret service agents a year ago. >> the secret service says they received a call at 1:00 p.m. yesterday from a reporte

i understand that doug hughes wants to keep his job? >> well, the postal service declined to say whether he faces disciplinary action. >>> this evening, the 23-year-old man accused of traveling to syria to train with a terror group pled not guilty today. he reportedly learned hand-to-hand combat. >>> around the world to iraq, tonight isis claiming responsibility for a massive car bomb. >>> and also from iraq this evening, reports that a member of saddam hussein's inner circle was reportedly killed. he once had a $10 million bounty on his head and was the king of clubs of the deck used to identify key members of hussein's team. >>> and air rage, you can see this on his sleeve a woman reportedly annoyed by his loud snoring. david kerley with the story tonight. >> reporter: this pen turned into a weapon, on a man who was snoring. >> imagine being asleep and then being stung by bees, and waking up and going, ow! >> reporter: police board. the evidence, blue ink on his shirt, from the pokes or stabs from the woman sitting next to him. this a

a judge ordered doug hughes free on his own recognizance. out of the terms of that release, the postal worker will be confined to his florida home and restricted from operating any kind of aircraft and not allowed to come into the districk. members of congress that we spoke with said hughes' landing showed a gap in security but they don't believe that anyone dropped the ball. >> can always second guess what they should have done when they should have done it. the fact of the matter is when all is said and done they did the right thing. >> i'm less concerned about who is going to be held accountable about what we're going to do forward to make sure it doesn't happen again. leon: hughes is due back in court on may 8th. doug hughes' plans to land in the nation's capital to raise awareness about campaign finance reform was an idea long ago torpedoed by a man that shared his mission. hughes' best friend said it was a bad idea but he thought it was buried before he got that phone call yesterday. joce sterman is here now with the new reaction to th

doug hughes has been with the postal service 11 years. the told the tampa bay times that he was going to do the stunt. he knew it would cost him his job. he's described by his neighbors in russ kin, florida, as a soft spoken nice guy. paper says he kept his wife and 12-year-old daughter in the dark about this but he did share his plans with at least one neighbor. >> secret service interviewed him and i last year. he wanted to do something that was spectacular. i was against it from the beginning and to the end because i knew how dangerous it was. >> in one video, hughes said he's not suicidal. he didn't think authorities would open fire on him. he claimed he was defenseless saying a boy scout with a bb gun could shoot him down. stay with us here at abc news all day as we uncover new details about hewes and the security breach. look for updates on america this morning and later on good morning america. >> former nfl star aaron hernandez will spend the rest of his life in prison after being convicted of first degree murder. jurors decided h

doug hughes is scheduled to make his appearance at 1:30 this afternoon. he's facing charges for flying into restricted airspace. that's sparking more questions about security in our area. senator ron johnson chairs the homeland security committee. he's issued this statement just a little while ago. he says "i am deeply concerned that someone has the ability to fly for over an hour through the most restricted airspace in our country and land on the lawn of the capitol. i'm investigating this incident and requesting a full accounting by all federal organizations entrusted with securing the united states with from this and similar events. news 4's derek ward will have much more on hughes and what the secret service may have known at 11:15. >>> a live look at the white house this morning where new security changes could be approved today. the i team's scott macfarlane broke this story on twitter. the security plan calls for steel spikes to be added to the top of the fence outside the

stephen: the pilot, a florida postal carrier identified as doug hughes was reportedly trying to protest what he called campaign finance corruption. the goal -- deliver 535 letters to all members of congress expressing thinks anger. >> not a very smart way to demonstrate, i don't think. stephen: scenarios like this prompt the what if question. what if it had been some sort of attack. well homeland security chairman mike mccall says had the pilot gotten any closer to the actual capitol building that authorities were prepared to shoot him down. live on capitol hill tonight, scott thuman, abc 7 news. leon: thank you, scott. moments after that gyrocopter landed, we put the i-team to work to see who was the man behind the controls of that device. joce sterman is live in the newsroom with information you'll only see here on 7. joce? joce: some of what we know about this pilot is courtesy of "the tampa bay times" that identified him as 61-year-old doug hughes. we've done our own digging and found links to this website called the civilist papers and their four step plan to reform the government.

doug hughes insists he was never a security threat. >> i'm a mailman i was going to bring the mail. i don't think the government is going to shoot a 61-year-old mailman in a flying bike. >> reporter: this is footage of the flight taken from his prospective. he flew 80 miles per hour from maryland into washington d.c., just 150 feet up in the air. you can see washington, d.c. in the distance below as he makes his approach. he said he used landmarks as guides. >> at the time that i was flying up the capitol mall it was a huge thrill, i wasn't worried about getting shot down, i was worried about my flying and i was getting focused on making my landing. >> reporter: his 11-year-old daughter said she was standing by him. >> i was down right proud. he is a patriot. >> reporter: hughes could get four years in prison. he said it's up to the american people to continue the conversation about campaign finance reform that he wanted to start with the stunt. >> if they pick it up, it's in their power to fix the problem. and then it's worth even if i lose my job and go to jail. >> reporter: doug

a day after doug hughes made this dramatic landing on the front lawn of the u.s. capitol, he will appear in federal court in just over an hour to hear the charges against him. his wild ride into the nation's capital is raising major concerns about security. >> how does an individual get that close? john: doug hughes flew his gyrocopter right through the no-fly zone around washington penetrating the missile systems, radar and anti-aircraft weapons before crash landing. he traveled more than 50 miles. and sources say the chopper was just that. too small too slow and too low. so it never detected. a witness said hughes was calm as he came in for the landing. >> there was no noise coming from him. he wasn't screaming. he wasn't shouting. john: hughes told friends and family that he wanted to deliver letters to lawmakers demanding change in campaign finance laws. >> and i'm going to land on the capitol mall and front of the capitol building. >> what he wantedo do was very brave and all that. even if a little bit stupid. john: the florida postal carrier revealed his pla

doug hughes is his name. his intention was to deliver a message to washington about big money in politics and government corruption. instead he's sparked a whole new conversation about the state of homeland security in this country. coming up a little bit later on the "today" show we'll talk to two men. one a journalist and another a close friend of hughes. both of whom were aware of this stunt. what turned into the unprecedented stunt before it happened. we'll hear from some law enforcement experts about some of the questions now being raised about what needs to be done to better secure our home right here in the capital. back to you. >> peter alexander, thank you. >>> and a live look at the white house this morning where new security changes could be approved today. the i-team's scott macfarlane broke this on twitter. it calls for steel spikes to be added to the top of the fence outside the white house. the change is in response to the frightening incident where a man-mademan made it over the fence and thro

as a result doug hughes is not allowed to come here unless he appears in court. for those court appearances. he also has been banned from the capitol and from the white house. he is ordered not to fly any aircraft. he's been also ordered to home confinement. with gps tracking. well, doug hughes appeared in federal court still wearing the postal service uniform from the day before. on wednesday, hughes was arrested after landing his small aircraft on the west lawn of the u.s. capitol. 61-year-old postal worker doug hughes had flown up from florida to hand deliver 535 letters to campaign finance -- over campaign finance reform. this is what nancy pelosi had to say. >> it's a stunning thing to think of -- that we have that visibility. and we're very interested in getting the answers to that. >> reporter: how he was able to get so close to the capitol and land on the west lawn is still under investigation and why we with respect alert -- weren't alerted sooner, hughes faces four years in prison. back to you. >> all right surae chinn. >> with one matter of national se

i understand that doug hughes wants to keep his job? any word on whether that will happen? >> well, the postal service says they're investigating the incident. but declined to say whether he faces disciplinary action. >> pierre, thank you. >>> this evening, the 23-year-old man accused of traveling to syria to train with a terror group was in court. he pled not guilty today. he reportedly learned hand-to-hand combat. training with powerful weapons. hoping to allegedly target u.s. soldiers at a texas military base. >>> around the world to iraq, tonight isis claiming responsibility for a massive car bomb. three people killed. at least five injured, including one american. >>> and also from iraq this evening, reports that a member of saddam hussein's inner circle a top lieutenant, reportedly killed. he once had a $10 million bounty on his head, and was the king of clubs in the infamous deck used to help troops identify key members of hussein's team. >>> and a stunning moment on a southwest flight. a bizarre instant of air rage, you can see this on his sleeve, a woman reportedly

saying hughes flew under the radar, literally. no way was doug hughes secret about his plans. in fact the secret service questioned him about his preparations for this bold stunt in 2013. jim acosta cnn's senior white house correspondent. jim, why wasn't this man's flight stopped? >> reporter: well jake a lot flies under the radar in washington as you know and this gyro copter incident is prompting new security concerns across the nation's capitol, es especially at the white house. security you upgrade are sorely needed on both sides of pennsylvania avenue. one day after he buzzed washington in his gyro copter -- and touched down at the capitol as seen in this a.p. video, florida political activist and pilot doug hughes landed in federal court, where he may soon be grounded behind bars. hughes is now facing federal charges including violating national defense airspace in a stunt aimed at protesting campaign fund-raising. a plan he shared in advance with the "tampa bay times." >> i don't believe that the authorities are going to shoot down a 60-year-old mailman in a flying bicy

i don't know where that investigation went. >> doug hughes is due back in a d.c. courtroom on may 8th. >>> all right, the caps hope to tie things up with the islanders tonight. they face off at 7:00 for game two of the quarterfinals. the caps are hoping to play a more up-tempo game than in game one. tickets start around $70. pretty steep. but let's go caps. >> go caps. >>> the latest way that kids are getting high. it's something that you have in your house right now. >> how hand sanitizer can pose a huge risk. >>> and while waiting for metro, and you see someone falling on the tracks what would you do? the race to save someone who fell on the tracks at a philadelphia subway stop. >>> you can see some blue and green moving through the area, but will you need the r >>> welcome back. police say an argument gone wrong is to blame for this deadly shooting in phoenix. police stormed the home yesterday after an hour's long standoff. inside they found five victims. three men were brothers and the other two were the men's mother and spouse. two other children were not hur

tom: pilot doug hughes flew 30 miles and restricted airspace. they said that communications between agencies worked for, at times parts of the capital put on lockdown, but lawmakers were not told. they say the agencies need to take this very seriously. >> they have to send a strong message that if somebody comes within that airspace, they will have a major problem. tom: we also learned that when doug hughes flew in on the gyrocopter he pretty much what the entire lake of the national mall before landing on the west lawn of the capital. the oversight committee will have another meeting on this issue next week with more questions for other law enforcement agencies. just outside of the capital, tom roussey, abc 7 news. alison: a strong words. still ahead -- a disturbing investigation in ohio. nearly two dozen people contract botulism after a potluck dinner. plus, google expands its wireless service, but breaks with tradition. and tomorrow night, social security numbers. credit card numbers and pins. we found them at a place that anyone can see. we

doug hughes said he expected to be intercepted as he approached washington because the whole plane of the stunt was to send a political message to congress. hughes is due back in washington for a hearing on may 8. a show of strength and solidarity today in oklahoma city, 20 years after what was once the deadliest attack on u.s. soil. neal karlinsky was therefore the emotional ceremony to honor the victims of the 1995 comment. [bagpipes play] neal: 168 empty seats 168 moments of silence. a void even time cannot fill. >> my baby -- neal: 20 years after the bombing in oklahoma city, people gather to honor their survivors and victims lost in what had been the nations deadliest terror attack before 9/11. today, the mt chairs, one for each man, woman, and child killed, filled with flowers and teddy bears. in a tradition the country knows all too well, family members read each name out loud. >> our dad mickey b. maroney. neal: the memorial is built on the spot where timothy mcveigh detonated a truck bomb in 19 a five. it gouged a crater into the building and the community's spirit. today, th

hughes to get this far in very restricted airspace. 61-year-old doug hughes landed his gyrocopter just yards from the capitol building to deliver 535 letters for house and senate lawmakers regarding campaign finance reform. he was immediately taken into custody. his aircraft moved to an undisclosed location. but the landing of this aircraft is now raising issues of national security. >> the technology is obviously outrun our security perimeter. >> it is shocking but, you know, what do you do? i don't know. you shoot it down when it's coming in. that's a pretty tough question, i guess. jeff: hughes took off from gettysburg pennsylvania, 80 miles northwest of washington, d.c. his trip took about an hour. now the question is who was responsible for allowing him to land his aircraft a few hundred yards from the capitol building without responding. >> department of homeland security. they have the primary responsibility for countering acts of terror. while this guy did not conduct an act of terror a suicide bomber on a gyrocopter would have been a great headline for al-qaida or isis. jeff:

. >>> congress wants to know why postal worker doug hughes was allowed to land his gyrocopter on the cap willing to lawn last week. secret service and capitol police tracked the aircraft but decided not to shoot it down out of concern for people on the ground. house oversight committee chair jason chaffetz had harsh words for hughes. >> he's lucky to be alive because he should have been blown out of the air. >> congress will hold hearings to determine why he wasn't stopped. he remains under house arrest in florida. if convicted he faces up to four years in prison and fines. >>> right now police have a man in custody who could have the crucial answers that folks need and want. he could explain what happened to freddie gray the moment before he died in baltimore police custody. we are now learning that man was inside the police van with the 25-year-old. this new information comes out as tensions boil over on the streets. let's take a look. after some people protests for several days, protesters got a little ugly. spit on police, tried to tear down a barricade. a woman who was standing

doug hughes is a u.s. postal worker and this morning we're learning he had been planning this for quite some time. and the secret service knew his name. news4's derek ward is live now at the capital with more on doug hughes. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. well, first off, mr. hughes is due in court today. he's being charged under title 49 of the u.s. code which deals with transportation because of the breach of secured air space inside the district and of course here over the mall. take a look. it's about 1:30 yesterday afternoon when hughes flew his gyrocopter all the way from gettysburg down here to the u.s. mall. making a special delivery for members of congress. he talked to local media in tampa about it. he sent e-mails to local media and posted it on facebook. it was still a surprise to folks here at the capitol, the capitol police and the faa. this despite hughes being talked to by the secret service back in 2013. he says he told the secret service he didn't plan to hurt anyone. he fully e

joce: shanahan knew about doug hughes' plan for more than a year before he ended up in cuffs. he tried to talk him out of it over and over again. and once the two men were interviewed by the secret service last year he thought this whole thing was dropped until he got a phone call yesterday morning. and that call came from hughes himself. it was a stunner he said, it let shanahan know that he was in d.c. and was planning to live stream an event and wanted him to go and look on a website. that turned out to be the flight hughes had been practicing for for months. learning how to pilot that gyrocopter that eventually landed on the capitol lawn. shanahan says it was a plot that came out of a brainstorming session to drum up support for the two and their cause. campaign finance reform. shanahan grew up in the d.c. area and has long warned his friend that he risked death and potentially prison if he took that flight into restricted airspace but hughes could not be swayed and shanahan was surprised as anyone when he saw his friend end up making national news. >> he knew he could die

turns out doug hughes department fly under the radar after all. he was being tracked by the nation's top security agencies. and as he entered restricted airspace near the capitol, authorities aimed multiple weapons aet the aircraft. next week congress will hold hearings to determine why hughes wasn't stopped. mark albert's in washington. good morning, mark. >> good morning, alison. last night lawmakers got their first in-depth briefing on this that lasted about 45 minutes. the ease with which he was able to penetrate the nation's most secure airspace is demanding lawmakers to ask for accountability. >> reporter: house oversight committee chair jason chaifetz had harsh words for postal worker doug hughes who flew a gyrocopter landing on the capitol lawn. but chaifetz was even tougher on norad and the fcc. >> they chose not to brief us. >> reporter: during a closed door briefing wednesday officials from the secret service and capitol police revealed multiple agencies tracked the aircraft but made a judgment call not to shoot it down out of concern f

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. >> the man reportedly at the controls, doug hughes had apparently made no secret of his plans. he had talked extensively with the tampa bay times which posted this video and interview on its website. >> i have got a plane. a gyro-plane. and i'm going to fly it, i'm gt to violate the no-supply zone, nonviolently and for nobody to get hurt and i'm going to land on the capital mall, in front of the capitol building. >> what hughes wanted to do is deliver letters to every member of congress bemoaning the influence of big money and calling for campaign finance reform. what he did was create a security nightmare. >> he just violates so much air space it's not even funny the fact he got even down the mall to the capital. >> the police quickly closed down the area, the straily prime minister was in the building, covered by a no fly zone put into place after 9/11. but small aircraft close to the ground such as the drone that ended up on the white house lawn and this gyrocopter are nearly impossible to pick up on radar quickly the air space reopened about and investigation is underway to

police quickly swarmed the chopper and took 61-year-old doug hughes into custody. he planned the stunt to make a statement. >> no sane person would do what i'm doing. >> "the tampa bay times" has been documented his quest for months. it was his quest to bring an urgent need for campaign finance reform. he was carrying letters for members of congress. >> i'm going have 535 letters strapped to the landing gear. >> ben montgomery, the reporter who interviewed him, hughes knew the cost of flying in restricted airspace. >> he was expecting helicopters escort him. he thought they would first assess him as a threat. real lease that his gyrocopter was completely transparent, he wasn't dangerous. >> he starts from gettysburg pennsylvania. they say hughes was not in contact with faa air traffic controllers and was not authorized to enter a restricted airspace. the agency did not say if it had detected the aircraft. >> frankly he's lucky he wasn't shot. >> if hughes wanted to get congress's attention, he did by raising security concerns. >> that determined individual was able

tom: that is doug hughes telling "the tampa bay times" he plan to do exactly what happened. >> i don't believe anybody is personally taking responsibility for what is going on for publicly executing some money for a inactive dissent. tom: oh my insecurity was prepared to shoot him down if he got closer. instead, they took him into custody. this is a reporter who said hughes contacted him out of the blue about a year ago. >> he thought if i do a stunt big enough, i can get people's attention. tom: a search by abc 7 shows that hughes has no record besides a traffic offense. in the video he said he wants to commit civil this obedience to have campaign-finance reform. >> i want them to change the government to build a wall of separation between the government and big money. tom: a friend in florida said he and not been able to reach use for days. >> we fear that he had crash somewhere. tom: abc 7 spoke with a man who hughes in the past who said he was angry and anti-establishment and a bit odd. we found writings from hughes online about congress in which he said he feels like congressman o

the pilot, 63-year-old doug hughes is here tonight. talk about blaming the messenger, congressman! >>> the majority of democrats in the senate finance committee have voted to put the trade deal on fastrack, so all you're hearing about all progressives are against this is not accurate. this is "hardball," the place for politics. if your purse is starting to look more like a tissue box... you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec® for powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin®. because it starts working faster on the first day you take it. zyrtec®. muddle no more™ . >>> loretta lynch has now been confirmed by the united states senate to be the next attorney general of this country. the vote was pretty strong, 56-43. ten republicans joined all the democrats in support of her confirmation, including several republicans facing, of course, re-election next year in states that president obama won. isn't that convenient? the only senator not to vote, this is ugly, ted cruz. president obama cheered lynch's confirmation late today. >> i want to say, public

the latest on a florida man who flew his gyrocopter on to the capitol lawn. 61-year-old doug hughes of ploard is due in -- florida is due in court in about an hour and a half. he made the 80-mile flight from gettysburg yesterday and surprised nearly everyone by landing on the south lawn of the capitol. craig boswell has more. >> reporter: tourists are still talking about wednesday's brazen stunt. a gyrocopter flying across the national mall and landing on the u.s. capitol's west lawn. >> what happened to our security? this is crazy. >> he was in for a joke or big crazy man. what if someone was seriously wanting to do some damage, it would be questionable. >> reporter: postal worker doug hughes was carrying 535 letters to congress to draw attention to what he believes is an urgent need for campaign finance reform. now a number of federal agencies are trying to figure out how he was able to fly some 80 miles at low altitude from gettysburg, pennsylvania through heavily restricted air space to the capitol lawn. >> he's lucky he wasn't shot glrt federal aviation administration says hughes

. >> reporter: a florida man named doug hughes claims to be the pilot. he sent a letter to different news stations including ours outlining a plan to fly a small plane to the west lawn and deliver letters to each member of congress. capitol police have only one man in custody and said they cleared the scene. from the capitol, wusa 9. >> we are learning more about doug hughes piloting that gyrocopter. he lives in this unassumed home near tampa, florida. he said he spent a year planning this event. his goal? to deliver 535 letters, one for each member of congress. the message involves campaign finance reform. here's what his neighbors had to say about him. >> always he have comments about and complaining about, we never imagined that he do something like that. >> i don't really know much about him. he pretty much keeps to himself. i've seen him maybe twice. that's about it. >> well, according to the tampa bay times, he's 61 years old, has a family, a steady job and apparently never been in trouble with the law. >>> if you use the green line make sure you b

doug hughes told reporters that he expected to be stopped by authorities with sirens and guns. instead he was greeted by waving tourists. hughes is now back home with his family in florida and says he kept his wife and 11-year-old daughter in the dark about the flight but now has their full support. >> i was just down right proud. he's a patriot, you know? he did it for the country. >> it was intended to be a plan where only i took the risk. but it was very lonesome. >> hughes is due back in court next month for the stunt intended to promote campaign finance reform. he says at no point did he feel that it wasn't a good idea. we'll hear much more from the pilot doug hughes in an interview with george stephanopoulos later on "good morning america." >> now to the tragedy at sea. hundreds of migrants believed to have died off libya when their ship overturned en route to italy, it overturned in the mediterranean. one survivor says there may have been 950 people on board including some who had been locked in the hold by smugglers. the italian prime minister is calling for a european

doug hughes left a washington, d.c., courthouse a free man for now. >> reporter: the 61-year-old man flew his gyrocopter under radar. he's been charged with knowingly operating an unlicensed aircraft and violating national air defense space. he faces up to four years in prison. hughes has been given home detention in florida and he's been ordered to stay out of the sky. >> they want to deter others from trying such missions but they don't want to send a 61-year-old who is no threat to prison. >> reporter: the content of the letters was less importantet than how they got here. >> the chain that's going to happen afterward is going to invoke a lot of questions by members. if you didn't detect it why, and if you did why didn't we hear about it. >> reporter: minority leader nancy pelosi was alarmed at the capitol that one of the most visible and secure buildings was breached. >> it's stunning. and we're interested in getting achbss to that. >> reporter: lawmakers plan to hold hearings looking into the incident. the flight caused or prompted security concerns to be more aware for police a

doug hughes says he was delivering letters to every member of congress to draw attention to campaign finance corruption. >>> here you go, it is wawa day, you heard me, yep wawa day april 16th is known as wawa day in philadelphia marking the day that the company's first convenient store opened and they are launching of the company's non-profit. wawa will be giving away more than 1.5 million cups of free coffee to all customers, chain wide, and an event with mayor michael nutter the company will unveil plans for the new center city location at broad and walnut. >> yesterday whole food giving out free coffee to day wawa is on it. >> enjoy. >>> 4:49. target and master card have reach a settlement over its massive data breach the back in 2013. >> money watch's jill wagner joins us from the new york stock exchange. so what are the details of the settlement. >> reporter: good morning, ukee and erika. they reached a 20 million-dollar settlement. target was reimburse banks for cost of the reissuing credit and debit card and fraud that came after the breach. hackers stole 40 million credit and

doug hughes is expected to make his first court appearance here in washington tomorrow. and late tonight, police are converging on the airport in gettysburg, pennsylvania, where it's believed that hughes took off on this unprecedented stunt. lester? >> all right, peter alexander, thank you. >>> we turn to an emotional day in a massachusetts courtroom. former new england patriots player aaron hernandez learned his fate. convicted of a 2013 murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole. a stunning fall for someone who was once a superstar on the football field. nbc's ron mott takes us inside the courtroom. >>> what say you, madam foreperson? >> reporter: after a two-month trial and seven days of deliberations, a dramatic end to the future of one of the nfl's most promising stars, aaron hernandez. >> guilty of murder in the first degree. >> reporter: audible gasps, hernandez appearing to say "wrong" while staring at the jury. >> so say all members of the jury? >> yes. >> reporter: his mother and fiancee wiped away tears, as did the family of the man he murdered. 27-

. >> reporter: gyrocopter pilot doug hughes is grounded, back with his family in florida. >> i was in shock. >> reporter: his wife and 11-year-old daughter speaking out about their dad's dangerous stunt, what he calls an act of civil disobedience protesting campaign financing. >> i was just downright proud. he's a patriot, you know? he did it for the country. >> reporter: though hughes shared his plan with a local reporter, but he says his family knew nothing about it. >> it was intended to be a plan where only i took the risk, it was very lonesome. >> reporter: the 61-year-old mailman now delivering new details about the trip. >> at no point did i feel this was not a good idea. >> reporter: revealing he took off from gettysburg, pennsylvania, flying 80 miles through maryland, straight into washington, d.c., using landmarks like the world war ii memorial and washington monument to navigate. hughes says he was surprised he actually made it to the capitol. >> i had expected to be intercepted on the way. >> reporter: if hughes had been detected flying through restricted airspace, scrambl

doug hughes left a washington, d.c., courthouse a free man for now. >> did it go like you expected? >> no. >> reporter: the 61-year-old man flew his gyrocopter under radar. past the white house and washington monument before landing on the west lawn of the capitol. he's been charged with knowingly operating an unlicensed aircraft and violating national defense airspace. he faces up to four years in prison. hughes has been given home detention in florida and he's been ordered to stay out of the sky. >> they want to effectively deter people from conducting similar missions but they don't want to waste resources sending a 61-year-old man who has no violent tendencies to federal prison. >> reporter: hughes was urging congress to take up campaign reform. the content of the letters was less important than how they got here. >> the chain that's going to happen afterward is going to invoke a lot of questions by members. if you didn't detect it, why, and if you did, why didn't we hear about it. >> reporter: minority leader nancy pelosi was alarmed at the capitol that one of the most visible

the mailman from florida, doug hughes is taking credit for this flight on his website. he said he did it as a protest of campaign finance laws and he said he had over 500 letters delivered to lawmakers. he also e-mailed a number of media outlets across the country saying he would do this. he even e-mailed news4. the faa did release a statement saying he was not in contact with the faa or traffic controllers and the faa did not authorize him to enter restricted air space. chris lawrence is on the hill gathering details about charges that could be filed. he will have a live report coming up on news4 at 5:00. at the live desk i'm wendy rieger. >>> now to breaking news on the metro green line. there's been a partial bridge collapse. news4's shoppari stone is there. >> reporter: no one was hurt. no one was injured, no one was on the crossing bridge but it is a total met. you can see crews and i have an update on what caused this. there was a subcontractor. if you look there, you see the crane? the person was trying to come through and the crane actually hit the bridge causin

i don't know where that investigation went. >> the mail carrier doug hughes is due back in a d.c. courtroom on may 8. >>> a wild night down in texas tonight. severe storms have spawned several funnel clouds and tornadoes in the texas panhandle panhandle. this is near the town of tampa and this is time lapse video from a storm chaser we followed much of the evening. at least ten tornadoes have been reported so far and hail from the size of golf balls to baseballs. >> a few small showers moving that you're area now, and they could hang in off and on through friday. doug said we could even hear a few rumbles of thunder before it's over. what's our plan for tomorrow morning. >> our plan for tomorrow morning, just take it slow. most of the heavy or steady rain will be out of here by tomorrow and that's what we're dealing w.first off take a look at plenty of sunshine earlier. 72 d.c. and 74 in fredericksburg and 78 winchester. only had showers earlier and now look at showers enveloping just about the entire area. heaviest showers making its way towards green and madison county and culpe

that is 61-year-old doug hughes, a mailman from florida, flying right past the white house before his gyrocopter ultimately landed. >> his plans were no secret. he posted them on his website and e-mailed those to several news organizations including us. it. >> reporter: montgomery says he got his first call from hughes a year ago. the 61-year-old mail carrier told the reporter he was plan black he called an act of civil disobedience that would draw a lot of attention, and in the event he got hurt or killed doing it, he wanted someone to tell his story. no reports could refuse that kind of pitch and montgomery began chronicling the lead-up to today's incident. in his time off as a mailman in a tampa suburb, douglas hughes began building and modify ago lightweight gyrocopter and a plan to use it to draw attention to a political cause. >> i will tell you completely honestly i would rather die in the flight than live to be 80 years old and see this country fall. >> reporter: the cause was campaign finance refor the purpose, an issue that rarely gets anyone's blood pumping. hughes would ch

. >>> doug hughes should have been blown out of the air. and in fact there were several guns pointed directly at him. when he landed, a small aircraft on the capitol grounds as part of a protest last week. all of that tonight from one of the congressmen reviewing the incident. our jackie bensen is live on capitol hill now where security officers are going have to answer questions next week. jackie? >> reporter: well jim, the lawmakers indicated to us that they would not have had a problem with the use of deadly force in this situation. >> as far as we're concerned, this is an extremely urgent situation. >> i think if you're going to do that and come down if it was up to me, i would have -- i would have taken care of the problem. >> reporter: house oversight committee jason chaffetz of utah and ranking member elijah cummings of maryland spoke to reporters after an hour-long classified briefing by those in charge of security at the u.s. capitol and the white house. the two expressed concern that gyrocopter pilot doug hughes was able to travel

joining me right now from his home in ruskin florida, where he's currently there is doug hughes. first of all mr. hughes congratulations for your message. without getting into big trouble, i completely support your message. let me ask you, what's the condition right now of your detention? are you allowed to walk around go to the store, go to starbucks, whatever? can you do that? >> no, no i'm under house arrest. i can't leave the inside of my home. >> the inside of your home. show me your ankle, the bracelet. the country wants to see that. can we look at it now? >> okay. it's just a gps. >> let me look at it. i have to charge it every day. >> you have to charge it? >> it's -- it's not removable, but it can get wet, i can shower with it but i'm not supposed to -- >> what is your feeling when you first wake up in the morning and you feel that on your leg? what do you feel about personal responsibility, the goal that you set when you set about this mission to fly the gyrocopter to the capitol building how does it all settle when you first wake up in the morning? you said dam itmit,