Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto, 34, was arrested after a disturbance Monday night on United Airlines Flight 2174, which was traveling from Newark, New Jersey, to New Orleans. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office arrested him after the plane landed at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, according to Fox News.
Authorities allege Gomez-Alberto said he had a bomb and tried to enter the cockpit. The Washington Examiner reported that Immigration and Customs Enforcement filed a detainer against him. The Department of Homeland Security told Fox News that Gomez-Alberto, a Honduran national, had previously been deported twice and received asylum in 2019 after a third attempted entry. DHS said his asylum application cited fear of harm in Honduras because he was transgender.