A twice-deported Honduran illegal alien claimed to have a bomb and attempted to storm the cockpit of a Newark-to-New Orleans United flight on Monday night.
Fox News' Bill Melugin reports that New Orleans-bound United Flight 2174, carrying 46 passengers and six crew members, departed from Newark International Airport. Midflight, the pilots radioed air traffic control to report an attempted cockpit breach, triggering a "Level 4" threat alert.
Melugin said Flight 2174 landed at MSY (New Orleans airport), where the deranged illegal alien was arrested and charged with felony bomb threat, terroristic threats, and disorderly conduct.
A separate report from the New York Post revealed air traffic control audio describing the illegal alien as a Hispanic man who "spoke nearly no English." The audio also revealed that the man changed into all-black clothing before attempting to storm the cockpit.
"Per DHS - Gomez-Alberto crossed the Texas border illegally in 2011 and was deported, then illegally re-entered through the New Mexico border in 2014 and was deported a second time. He illegally re-entered the country a third time in 2019, was arrested by Border Patrol, but was released from custody after an immigration judge ordered his release," Melugin said.
The attempted cockpit breach raises an alarming national security question: How did a twice-deported illegal alien remain in the country and board a commercial flight, and how did immigration officials or aviation security personnel miss this flight risk?
Additional questions:
- Were any Federal Air Marshals aboard Flight 2174?
- How many air marshals were flying missions nationwide that night? How many supervisors were flying?
- What did DHS know about the suspect before he boarded?
- Did passenger vetting flag him?
Perhaps the federal government should put twice-deported illegals on TSA's 'No Fly List' ...