SignalHub:Airline passenger gets 19-month sentence. US says he tried to enter cockpit and open an exit door

2025-05-02 13:14:19source:Ethermaccategory:News

KANSAS CITY,SignalHub Mo. (AP) — A airline passenger who tried to craft a shank from plastic cutlery and open the cockpit door during a flight has been sentenced to 19 months in prison.

A federal judge in Missouri handed down the sentence Thursday against Juan Remberto Rivas, 52.

Prosecutors sought a term of between 41 months and 51 months, although they said Rivas was affected by his use of methamphetamine and wasn’t trying to cause a crash.

The incident happened on an American Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., in February 2022. Witnesses told an FBI agent that Rivas tried to use plastic cutlery and his shirt sleeve to make a shank, pushed a service cart into a flight attendant, and tried to open both the cockpit door and one of the plane’s exit doors.

A flight attendant hit him over the head with a metal coffee pot, and passengers subdued the man, according to court documents. Pilots landed in Kansas City, where Rivas was arrested.

Rivas pleaded guilty in January to a single count of interfering with a flight crew. Prosecutors said he had two previous convictions, including assaulting a spouse or ex-spouse, and faces a charge of assaulting a law enforcement officer in Missouri.

More:News

Recommend

US wholesale inflation accelerated in November in sign that some price pressures remain elevated

WASHINGTON (AP) — Wholesale costs in the United States picked up sharply last month, signaling that

NTSB report faults trucking company logs in fatal 2022 bus crash

A crash that killed three passengers on a party bus on a Virginia highway was caused by a fatigued t

Want Thicker, Fuller Hair? These Are the Top Hair Growth Treatments, According to an Expert

The products featured in this article are from brands available in NBCUniversal Checkout. E! makes a