A Honduran national who had already been deported from the United States twice is accused of trying to force his way into the cockpit of a United Airlines flight and claiming he had a bomb, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to Fox News.
Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto was arrested by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office after United Airlines Flight 2174 landed at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport following a disturbance in the air Monday night. The flight originated in Newark.
According to the Daily Mail, Gomez-Alberto claimed to have a bomb during the flight, which led the pilots to issue a reported hijacking alert. DHS separately confirmed he was accused of attempting to enter the cockpit.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged a detainer for Gomez-Alberto on Tuesday, Nov. 10, the day after his arrest.
“On November 10, 2026, ICE lodged a detainer for Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto, a criminal illegal alien from Honduras, with Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office after he attempted to gain entry to the cockpit during a flight,” a DHS spokesperson told Fox News.
DHS says this was not his first encounter with immigration authorities. Border Patrol apprehended him after he illegally entered the U.S. near El Indio, Texas, in September 2011, and again near Columbus, New Mexico, in October 2014. He was deported both times. In 2019, Border Patrol caught him again after an attempted illegal entry near San Ysidro, California.
Despite that record, ICE released Gomez-Alberto from custody in January 2020 after an immigration judge ordered his release pending removal proceedings, DHS said.
Local reporting citing the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office said he was booked on charges of communicating false information of planned arson and terrorizing. DHS’s own statement listed bomb-threat, terroristic-threat and disorderly-conduct offenses.
United Airlines confirmed the incident in a statement to Fox News Digital: “United flight 2174 from Newark to New Orleans landed safely following a disruptive incident involving a passenger onboard. Law enforcement met the aircraft upon arrival.” The airline said the plane was a Boeing 737 MAX 9 carrying 46 passengers and six crew members, and referred further questions to local authorities. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A DHS spokesperson added: “Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, criminal illegal aliens are NOT welcome in the United States.”
