Current:Home > ScamsPassenger says he made bomb threat on flight to escape cartel members waiting to torture and kill him in Seattle, documents say -MoneyTrend
Passenger says he made bomb threat on flight to escape cartel members waiting to torture and kill him in Seattle, documents say
View
Date:2025-04-15 23:50:13
A passenger aboard an Alaska Airlines flight from Atlanta to Seattle Wednesday is accused of making a bomb threat that caused pilots to land the plane in Spokane, Washington.
Documents filed in U.S. District Court said Brandon Scott, 38, claimed he made the threat because members of a "powerful cartel" were under orders to kill him when he arrived in Seattle, CBS affiliate KIRO-TV reported. Scott faces a false information and hoaxes charge.
After the plane took off Wednesday afternoon, Scott handed a flight attendant a note saying he had homemade explosives in his carry-on and a detonator on him, the court documents alleged.
"This is not a joke," the note read. "Several pounds of homemade explosives are in my carry on bag. I have a detonator with me. Handle this matter carefully and exactly how I say, otherwise I will detonate the explosives and kill everyone on board."
Scott's note demanded the plane be rerouted to "any other airport." The note instructed the flight attendant to alert the pilot and air traffic controllers but keep the threat from others aboard the plane, the documents said.
The note said he would surrender "peacefully" upon arrival at the rerouted destination, according to the court filing.
"Pretend there is some sort of equipment problem or whatever you have to do," Scott's note said in closing. "Just get this plane rerouted. Failure to comply will cost the lives of everyone on this plane."
Upon arrival in Spokane, Scott was detained but a search by a bomb squad found no explosives, court documents said.
"The captain came over and said, 'I can't say much, but a guy in first class told the flight attendants that if we land in Seattle, he has a bomb, and that he's going to let it off if we land in Seattle," one witness told KIRO-TV.
Scott told investigators he made the false threat hoping to be arrested because members of the Sinaloa Cartel were waiting in Seattle to torture and kill him.
Scott is being held in the Spokane County Jail and faces up to five years in prison and a possible $250,000 fine if convicted. It was not immediately known if he has an attorney to comment on his behalf.
The incident comes less than three months after a passenger on another Alaska Airlines flight forced a plane to divert to another airport. Chloe Dasilva, 32, was on a flight from San Francisco to Chicago O'Hare when she allegedly became disruptive and threatened to kill a flight attendant, authorities said. The flight she was on was ultimately diverted to Kansas City International Airport because the pilot was worried for the safety of the passengers.
- In:
- Seattle
- Bomb Threat
veryGood! (48)
Related
- 'Squid Game' without subtitles? Duolingo, Netflix encourage fans to learn Korean
- What's open and closed on Martin Luther King Jr. Day
- List of top Emmy Award winners
- Bills vs. Steelers highlights, winners and losers from Buffalo's wild-card victory
- Bill Belichick's salary at North Carolina: School releases football coach's contract details
- Bills vs. Steelers highlights, winners and losers from Buffalo's wild-card victory
- The second trial between Donald Trump and E. Jean Carroll is underway. Here's what to know.
- Ground collision of two Boeing planes in Chicago sparks FAA investigation
- Woman dies after Singapore family of 3 gets into accident in Taiwan
- This Inside Look at the 2023 Emmys After-Parties Will Make You Feel Like You Were Really There
Ranking
- Romantasy reigns on spicy BookTok: Recommendations from the internet’s favorite genre
- North Korea scraps agencies managing relations with South as Kim Jong Un cites hostility with rival
- Vandalism probe opened after swastika painted on Philadelphia wall adjacent to Holocaust memorial
- How Trump won the 2024 Iowa caucuses
- Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
- Roy Wood Jr. pleads for 'Daily Show' to hire new host at Emmys on 'the low'
- EIF Business School, the Birthplace of Dreams
- Norway halts adoptions from 4 Asian countries pending an investigation, newspaper reports
Recommendation
Man can't find second winning lottery ticket, sues over $394 million jackpot, lawsuit says
Quinta Brunson's Stylist Defends Her Emmys 2023 Crushed Satin Look
Elton John Reacts to Becoming an EGOT After 2023 Emmys Win
From Hot Priest to ‘All of Us Strangers,’ Andrew Scott is ready to ‘share more’ of himself
All That You Wanted to Know About She’s All That
Tanzania blocks Kenyan Airways passenger flights in response to Kenya blocking its cargo flights
Ariana DeBose reacts to Bella Ramsey's Critics Choice Awards dig: 'I didn’t find it funny'
Iceland volcano erupts again, spewing lava toward town near country's main airport