Federal authorities are probing the actions of a Saudi Arabian man who tried to get into the cockpit of an American Airlines flight to Indianapolis.
Indianapolis Airport police said Abdulaziz Mubarak Alshammari, 20, was pulled away from the cabin door by another passenger a half hour before Flight 1936 from New York to Indianapolis International Airport landed at about 10 p.m. Wednesday.
Alshammari, who said he is a student at the University of Indianapolis, appeared confused when flight attendants and police questioned him, according to a police report. Investigators photocopied a note Alshammari wrote in Arabic while on the plane.
Scott Hall, a spokesman for the University of Indianapolis, said the school has no record of Alshammari being a student there.
Passengers said Alshammari walked to the front of the plane, then to the rear, before strolling again to the front. When he got there, he appeared to be looking for a door and started tugging on the locked cabin door.
Capt. James K. Kolostyak heard someone trying to open the cabin door and saw the interior door light come on, according to the report. He called a flight attendant on the plane’s phone system to ask what was happening.
The attendant was at the back of the plane serving passengers at the time. A passenger in seat 4B, Rodney Bailey approached Alshammari, grabbed his arm and led him back to his seat, 13B.
Bailey asked Alshammari if he were looking for the bathroom and Alshammari shook his head.
Airport police officer Jonathan Brown talked to Alshammari after the plane landed and said Alshammarri, who spoke little English, didn’t quite understand what he had done.
Alshammari said he flew from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to Doha, Qatar, to John F. Kennedy Airport in New York before heading to Indianapolis.
Police contacted The Indiana Intelligence Fusion Center and the FBI Terrorist Screening Center to run checks on the passenger. Records indicated Alshammari was not on a terrorist watch list nor wanted on criminal warrants.
No charges were filed.
(Source: WTSP)
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7 Responses
“Alshammari, who said he is a student at the University of Indianapolis, appeared confused when flight attendants and police questioned him, according to a police report.” What in the world was he confused about?! HE TRIED TO HIJACK THE PLANE FOR G-D’S SAKE!!!
he wasnt armed. he didnt resist when taken back to his seat. he had no idea he did anything wrong. not a terrorist, just an individual who seems to be oblivious to the ‘new world’ out there now.
Lets not jump to conclusions. This guy may just be a stupid guy who didn’t know how to find the bathroom.
What are they probing for goodness sake?
Let me help the idiots at the FBI… HE IS A YISHMAELI & HE WAS TRYING TO GET INTO THE COCKPIT!!!!!! HELLLLLLLLOOOOOOO!!! DO THE MATH GENIUSES!!!!
OK Mark, let’s do the math. If 2+1=3 then 5+1 should also equal 3. I mean, it’s the same 1, isn’t it?
The poor guy was confused and having an “asher yatzar” moment. He is no terrorist so lets not blow this out or porportion. His lack of english fluency is not a capital crime.
6, I know what you mean. EVERYONE runs to the cockpit of a plane when he is looking for the poylishe galach. Suuuure!