Passenger Tried to Open Door During Flight and Attacked Attendant, U.S. Says
The man was charged in federal court after he tried to unlock an emergency exit and attempted to stab a flight attendant with a broken spoon, the authorities said.
The passenger, Francisco Severo Torres, 33, of Leominster, Mass., was arrested after other passengers tackled him and the flight landed safely at Boston Logan International Airport, the authorities said.
Mr. Torres was charged with one count of interference and attempted interference with flight crew members and attendants using a dangerous weapon. The charge carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
He made an initial appearance on Monday in Federal District Court in Boston, and was detained until a hearing on Thursday, prosecutors said. The federal public defender who represented him did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.
United Airlines said in a statement that “thanks to the quick action of our crew and customers, one customer was restrained after becoming a security concern,” on Flight 2609. No serious injuries were reported, the airline said.
“We have zero tolerance for any type of violence on our flights, and this customer will be banned from flying on United pending an investigation,” the airline said, adding that it was cooperating with the investigation.
United Airlines said in a statement that “thanks to the quick action of our crew and customers, one customer was restrained after becoming a security concern,” on Flight 2609. No serious injuries were reported, the airline said.
“We have zero tolerance for any type of violence on our flights, and this customer will be banned from flying on United pending an investigation,” the airline said, adding that it was cooperating with the investigation.
Flight 2609 had left Los Angeles at about 8:20 a.m. and was about 45 minutes from Boston when an alarm in the cockpit warned that a side door between the first class and coach sections had been disarmed, a Boston Police detective assigned to an F.B.I. task force wrote in a sworn statement filed in court.
A flight attendant who went to investigate found that the locking handle on the door had been moved about one fourth of the way toward the unlocked position, the statement said. The arming lever for the emergency slide had also been moved to the “disarmed” position, the statement said.
Shortly after that, Mr. Torres got out of his seat and approached two flight attendants who were standing in an aisle, the statement said. One of the flight attendants saw Mr. Torres mouth something that he could not hear, the statement said.
Mr. Torres was holding a “shiny object,” which he later said was the handle of a metal spoon that he had broken in half in the airplane’s bathroom, the statement said.
When he got close to one of the flight attendants, he thrust the spoon handle toward that crew member in a “stabbing motion,” the statement said. The flight attendant felt Mr. Torres’s hand hit him on the shirt collar and tie three times, the statement said.
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