Passenger arrested after allegedly trying to open exit door on SkyWest flight
A SkyWest plane was diverted midflight after a passenger allegedly tried to open the plane's emergency exit door and got into a fight with a flight attendant attempting to stop him, according to a federal complaint filed Friday.
The suspect -- a 23-year-old man from Nebraska -- was arrested after the Detroit-bound flight safely landed in Iowa, authorities said.
SkyWest Flight 3612 was diverted to Cedar Rapids on Thursday evening due to an "unruly" passenger, the airline said.
The Cedar Rapids Police Department identified the arrested passenger as Mario Nikprelaj.
He initially faced multiple state charges in connection with the alleged incident, making his first court appearance earlier Friday in Linn County. Local prosecutors have since moved to drop the charges upon learning Nikprelaj will be facing federal charges, according to court filings. A judge subsequently approved the motion, dismissing the state case, according to court filings.
The federal complaint seeks to charge him with interference with flight crew members and attendants.
According to the complaint, a flight attendant notified the captain of an "unruly passenger" before the aircraft left the gate in Omaha, Nebraska, though the flight crew was able to "satisfactorily control the situation" and the plane departed.
Approximately 20 miles outside of Cedar Rapids, the flight attendant made an emergency call to the captain "and advised Nikprelaj was attempting to open the aircraft's emergency exit door," the complaint stated.
The captain then made an emergency call to air traffic control at the Eastern Iowa Airport notifying them of the emergency landing, according to the complaint.
Five minutes later, a second flight attendant advised the captain that the suspect was "still attempting to open the emergency exit door and was fighting" with the first flight attendant, the complaint said.
On air traffic control audio, the pilot can be heard saying that the passenger was "in a fight with a flight attendant right now, trying to open the emergency exit."
The flight attendant involved in the alleged fight told federal authorities that, while attempting to stop the suspect from opening the emergency door, Nikprelaj "pushed and threatened to kill" the crew member, according to the complaint.
Three passengers helped the flight attendants subdue Nikprelaj, after the captain put out a call instructing any willing passengers to assist, and the flight landed approximately 15 minutes later, according to the complaint.
The flight was met by law enforcement officials upon landing and the passenger was arrested and transported to Linn County Correctional Center, police said.
Nikprelaj remains in custody in Linn County on a federal hold, online jail records show. Online court records do not list any attorney information. He is scheduled to make his first appearance on the complaint on Tuesday in Cedar Rapids federal court, according to online records.
"The FBI takes threats to aviation seriously and we work with our partners to address crimes occurring on commercial aircraft that endanger the safety of passengers, flight crews, and flight attendants," the FBI said in a statement.
The investigation into the incident is ongoing, the FBI said.
The flight had 67 passengers and four crew members on board.
After being diverted to Cedar Rapids, the suspect was captured on video being escorted off the plane by police.
The flight continued to its destination, SkyWest confirmed to ABC News.
"SkyWest has zero tolerance for unruly behavior as safety for our customers and crew is our top priority," the airline said in a statement.
