A Puerto Rican passenger is accused of opening the emergency exit door of a JetBlue flight while the plane was taxiing at Logan Airport in Bo, USA on Tuesday (Jan 7) night. He was subdued by the co-passengers as he tried to jump out of the aircraft during an alleged argument with his girlfriend. The man, identified as Morales Torres, whose alleged actions triggered an emergency slide to inflate, was arrested after the incident, before being let out on bail, according to a CBS report.
As per the witnesses, Mr Torres was arguing with his girlfriend when he suddenly opened the door of Flight 161 as it was headed to San Juan, Puerto Rico. Before the situation could spiral, the other passengers intervened and restrained Mr Torres until the cavalry arrived.
The Massachusetts State Police (MSP) arrived at the scene around 7:25 pm local time and detained Mr Torres.
“Boyfriend and girlfriend were arguing behind me. Boyfriend got mad, got up walked down the center aisle, grabbed the emergency door, ripped it off, completely off. FBI agent tackled him, handcuffed him. Shortly after, state police came on board and took him off,” passenger Fred Wynn told the Independent.
As per reports, Mr Torres’ parents posted the bail. He has been ordered to live with them and not travel except to Massachusetts for future court appearances.
“This is a highly unfortunate circumstance, I see this more as a medical issue than a criminal one,” said his attorney Robert Carmel-Montes
“He needs help to get back on track. He’s a young man with a future ahead of him and everyone has to pick up the pieces.”
As per the airline, the flight was swapped for another aircraft and eventually left for San Juan. The Federal Aviation Administration is now investigating the incident.
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Previous instance
Last month, a passenger aboard an Alaska Airlines flight opened the emergency exit and climbed over the wing as she became “anxious” while other passengers were deboarding.
The incident transpired as Alaska Airlines Flight 323 landed at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and passengers started filing off the plane and into the airport terminal. The unnamed woman allegedly became anxious and climbed out onto the wing of the plane, leading to frantic calls from the cabin crew.
The Port of Seattle fire department was called into action to help the passenger get off the aircraft before any tragedy could happen. After safely rescuing the woman, the fire department sent the passenger to the hospital for evaluation while Port Police was informed about the incident.
