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

2025-05-05 04:45:50source:Oliver James Montgomerycategory:Contact

KANSAS CITY,GravityX Exchange 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:Contact

Recommend

Federal agencies are reeling from Trump administration cuts to government

Whether a "chainsaw," per Elon Musk, or "scalpel," as President Trump has said — the Trump administr

Stunning new Roman frescoes uncovered at Pompeii, the ancient Italian city frozen in time by a volcano

Stunning Roman frescoes have been uncovered by archeologists in Pompeii, the ancient city destroyed

Flash flooding sweeps into the Pittsburgh area and spurs numerous water rescues

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Flash flooding caused by relentless heavy rains that soaked western Pennsylvania s