YOUR AD HERE »

Bruised suspect appears in court for initial appearance

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DENVER ” A man who allegedly tried opening an emergency door during a United Airlines flight between Chicago and Sacramento, Calif., said he had a phone inside of him that was a bomb ready to explode, according to an arrest affidavit released Tuesday.

Jose Manuel Pelayo-Ortega, 36, also made his initial appearance before a U.S. District Judge Michael Watanabe who appointed a public defender and approved prosecutors’ request that he be detained until a court hearing Friday.

Pelayo-Ortega, whose hometown was not immediately available, faces a charge of interference with a flight crew.



Pelayo-Ortega, who was wearing a neck brace and still bruised days after Friday’s incident, told Watanabe “I was seeing visions,” according to KUSA-TV.

An arrest affidavit said Pelayo-Ortega entered the first-class section from coach, went to some bathrooms near the cockpit then made the sign of the cross before trying to open an emergency exit.



A female flight attendant grabbed Pelayo-Ortega by the shirt and a passenger sitting nearby got up and placed Pelayo-Ortega in a headlock, while another passenger grabbed Pelayo-Ortega’s arms. Several other passengers joined in the scuffle, eventually handcuffing and duct taping Pelayo-Ortega’s legs.

“Kill me, kill me, I have a phone inside of me. It is a bomb, it will go off anytime” Pelayo-Ortega is quoted as saying during the struggle.

Other passengers heard him make references to 9/11, “the towers” and that “your religion won’t save you.”

Two of three Secret Service agents on their way to Sacramento, where President Bush was visiting, helped detain Pelayo-Ortega, according to the affidavit. The plane was diverted to Denver International Airport where it landed safely.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

As a Summit Daily News reader, you make our work possible.

Summit Daily is embarking on a multiyear project to digitize its archives going back to 1989 and make them available to the public in partnership with the Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection. The full project is expected to cost about $165,000. All donations made in 2023 will go directly toward this project.

Every contribution, no matter the size, will make a difference.