Twice-Deported Honduran Accused of United Cockpit Bomb Threat

Thirty-four-year-old Honduran national Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto was arrested after allegedly telling crew he had a bomb and trying to enter the cockpit of United Airlines Flight 2174 from Newark to New Orleans late Monday. The Boeing 737 MAX 9, carrying 46 passengers and six crew members, landed safely, and law enforcement took him into custody without incident. He was booked in Louisiana on charges including communicating false information about planned arson and terrorizing; the FAA plans to investigate, and ICE lodged a detainer. DHS says Gomez-Alberto was deported after border apprehensions in 2011 and 2014, arrested again in 2019, and released from immigration custody in 2020 under an immigration judge’s order while removal proceedings continued. Authorities also cite prior criminal offenses, including bomb threats and terroristic threats.