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A man from Texas was apprehended for gaining access to a Delta Air Lines flight by taking a photo of someone else’s boarding pass without their knowledge.
According to a complaint filed in a Utah district court on Monday, Wicliff Yves Fleurizard, 26, has been charged with stowing away on a vessel or aircraft for boarding a flight without a ticket.
According to security footage, Mr. Fleurizard was supposedly seen taking photos of the phones and boarding passes of several passengers at Salt Lake City International Airport on March 17, before boarding a flight to Austin, Texas.
According to the complaint, Mr. Fleurizard took the photos without the passengers’ knowledge.
After the boarding of the plane began, Mr. Fleurizard boarded and proceeded to use the lavatory in the front of the aircraft. He spent a considerable amount of time there while other passengers boarded the flight.
After everyone had finished boarding and the doors were shut, Mr. Fleurizard left the lavatory and walked to the back of the plane. He then went into another lavatory.
According to the complaint, a flight attendant approached Mr. Fleurizard after he exited the restroom and noticed that there were no vacant seats to accommodate him.
By this time, the airplane had already departed from the gate and was in the process of moving towards the runway.
The gentleman informed the attendant that he had seat 21F, but the crew confirmed that the individual who had purchased the ticket for that seat was already occupying it.
After manually searching the system, the flight attendants discovered that Mr. Fleurizard did not have a ticket for the flight and were able to obtain his legal name.
The aircraft had to return to the gate and Mr. Fleurizard was contacted by law enforcement.
Mr Fleurizard told police that he was visiting Park City, Utah, on a snowboarding trip, and was using his friend’s Southwest “buddy pass” to get home; however, the two flights he tried to get on with that airline were both full.
He expressed that he had to return to his residence to visit his loved ones.
According to the complaint, Mr. Fleurizard acknowledged that he had made an error and was simply attempting to return home.
According to CNN, the police have stated that he is currently being detained with a federal hold at Salt Lake County Metro Jail.
According to a statement provided to The Independent, Delta Air Lines stated they are assisting with the investigation in collaboration with authorities.
According to them, Delta is working with law enforcement and federal agencies to investigate a situation where a non-ticketed individual was removed from the DL 1863 flight in Salt Lake City on March 17 before the scheduled departure.
I have reached out to Mr Fleurizard’s legal representative and Delta Air Lines for a response.
Source: independent.co.uk
