Man Forces His Way Into American Airlines Flight At Miami Airport, Arrested

A man, who tried to enter a plane forcefully, was detained at Miami International Airport early Monday (Oct. 7) morning and a fellow passenger filmed the entire incident.

The man, reportedly a ticketed passenger, ran on the jet bridge past the boarding gate when the boarding process of Flight 1060 from Miami to Newark was ongoing, American Airlines told CBS Miami.

A passenger named Ari Terman, who was set to board the same flight, took video of the man being arrested in the terminal after he was made to debark from the plane, and shared it on his Twitter account, CBS Miami reported.

Terman, when approached by CBS Miami, said, “This guy ran on the flight and he started shouting that it was his plane and that he was from the FBI and everyone started standing up to watch and they were blocking the aisle and then they called for security and he was dragged off the plane.”

The man was held under the Baker Act, a law empowering the authorities to hold someone up to 72 hours at a mental health facility who they deem lack mental balance. The man was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital for a medical evaluation, CBS News reported.

Everyone was removed from the flight following the arrest to run a security check again. Passengers were allowed to board the plane thereafter.

The plane left at 10:17 a.m., about three and a half hours later than scheduled.

According to a statement released by the airlines, “During the boarding process of American Airlines flight 1060 from Miami to Newark, a ticketed passenger for that flight ran on the jetbridge, bypassing the gate agent. Law enforcement was summoned, who removed the passenger.”

A fellow passenger, whose first name is Aisha, recounted to CBS Miami, “There was a man in front of me who was sweating. Then he came flying past me and he was sprinting. Then he tried to get past the gate and get on the plane and he was being screamed at by passengers. And then a flight attendant started screaming 'don’t let him on. Don’t let him on.' It took 5 guys to take this guy into custody. It was quite a scene. He got up on the seats next to me. Imagine. It was about 6 in the morning and this was just wild.”