Alarm On A United Flight
A United flight traveling from Newark, New Jersey, to New Orleans became the scene of a serious security scare Monday evening. The aircraft carried 46 passengers when officials said 34-year-old Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto began acting erratically, told attendants he had a bomb, and tried to reach the cockpit. The plane issued a hijacking alert, and Gomez-Alberto was detained in the back of the aircraft before being arrested after it landed in New Orleans. Air traffic control audio included a person saying that Gomez-Alberto had changed into all black before trying to reach the cockpit. Air travel is already a test of patience, so a claimed bomb and a cockpit rush are not exactly an upgrade.
DHS Points To A Court Release
On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security identified Gomez-Alberto as a twice-deported illegal immigrant from Honduras who had recently been released by a judge. DHS said he was facing a third removal from the United States when a judge released him in 2020. The department stated, “He has been removed from the country twice and was released a third time, pending removal proceedings, by a judge.” DHS added, “Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, criminal illegal aliens who try to HIJACK AIRPLANES are NOT welcome in the United States.” The statement puts the court release and the immigration enforcement system squarely at the center of the public debate.
A Record Of Deportations
The account, citing the New York Post, describes a lengthy immigration history. Border agents first arrested Gomez-Alberto near El Indio, Texas, in September 2011. They arrested him again near Columbus, New Mexico, in October 2014. He was deported after both arrests. Gomez-Alberto was arrested a third time in 2019 after allegedly sneaking across the border near San Ysidro, California. ICE released him in January 2020 under a judge’s order while removal proceedings remained pending. That sequence raises a straightforward question about how a person removed twice could return, face another removal case, and remain outside immigration custody. The answer will depend on the court record and the agencies handling the case.
State Charges And Federal Review
Gomez-Alberto is being held at the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna, Louisiana. He faces charges of terrorizing and communicating false information about arson, along with a fugitive charge connected to an apparent warrant in another state. No bond has been set. ICE lodged a detainer against him Tuesday, adding an immigration hold to the state criminal case. The Justice Department is reportedly considering whether to bring federal charges. For now, state prosecutors, immigration officials, and possible federal prosecutors each have a role, creating the familiar bureaucratic relay race in which paperwork gets passed from one desk to another while the public waits for a clear result.
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