A man who allegedly sneaked onto a United flight last month and tried to hide from the crew in an airplane bathroom is facing charges in Texas.
NBC News reported that Abdulrahman Oriyomi, 25, of Houston, was arrested Friday and charged with intentionally impairing or disrupting a critical infrastructure facility in connection with the May 18 incident. Charges were filed in Harris County, and Oriyomi was detained at the county processing center as of Monday morning pending a bail review.
According to court records obtained by NBC News, surveillance video reviewed by investigators showed Oriyomi had a problem with his boarding pass while attempting to clear security at George Bush Intercontinental Airport but was allowed to proceed through after speaking with officers and having his picture taken.
Later, in Terminal C, he spoke with multiple United employees and tried to board at least one flight but was turned away when his boarding pass failed to scan, the documents said.
He eventually joined the line for a United flight to Los Angeles and managed to slip past the gate agents while they were preoccupied with other passengers.
Oriyomi is believed to have hidden in one of the airplane’s bathrooms to conceal the fact that he did not have a ticket for a seat. A passenger notified a flight attendant that there was someone in the bathroom while the aircraft was taxiing, and Oriyomi was instructed to take a seat, but he continued to return to the bathroom. When asked his name, he allegedly answered, “Mr. Lopez,” which did not match any names on the flight’s manifest.
The airplane returned to the gate, all passengers and crew deplaned, and the aircraft was checked for explosives by Houston police. Authorities learned from a United customer service officer that there was a reservation under Oriyomi’s name, but it had been canceled because it was never paid for.
He was issued a warning for trespassing and was apparently not detained at the time.
Investigators later discovered that Oriyomi’s boarding pass was fraudulent, which led to the upgraded charges.
United has not publicly commented on the incident.
