Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto
Introduction
Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto is a 34-year-old Honduran national living in New York who was arrested after allegedly claiming he had a bomb aboard United Airlines flight 2174 from Newark to New Orleans and trying to force his way into the cockpit on the night of November 9, 2026 β an outburst that prompted the pilots to broadcast a hijacking alert. He was taken into custody without incident when the plane landed safely at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, booked into the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center, and as of Tuesday was being held without bail. He has not been tried, nothing in his case has been adjudicated, and the charges are accusations; he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Background Information
Immigration officials told The Post that Gomez-Alberto, a Honduran citizen, was arrested three separate times by Border Patrol for illegally entering the United States before the flight: he was deported after a September 2011 arrest near El Indio, Texas, and again after an October 2014 arrest in Columbus, New Mexico, then made his way back in 2019 near San Ysidro, California, where he was caught a third time. Despite that record, he was freed from ICE custody in January 2020 after an immigration judge ordered his release pending removal proceedings, according to DHS. Authorities said he had been living in the Bronx β the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office told NOLA.com he was a New Yorker, and WWL-TV reported he was living in New York and is not a U.S. citizen. The sheriff’s office also said he is wanted by federal immigration authorities, and ICE lodged a detainer with the sheriff’s office on Tuesday, according to DHS.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Charged, not adjudicated. Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto is charged in Jefferson Parish with communication of false information of planned arson and terrorizing, with updated reporting adding felony bomb threat, terroristic threats and disorderly conduct counts. He has not been tried, no federal charges have been announced, nothing has been adjudicated, and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
United flight 2174, a Boeing 737 MAX 9 carrying 46 passengers and six crew members, departed Newark around 9:30 p.m. on November 9, 2026. About 11:20 p.m., according to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, Gomez-Alberto began acting irrationally and told crew members he had a bomb on board; the Post reported that he tried to rush the cockpit, and the pilots radioed in an attempted breach of the cockpit β a “Level 4” threat alert, the highest aviation threat level, used in hijacking situations. Flight-tracking accounts said the pilots squawked 7500, the transponder code that alerts air traffic control to unlawful interference, and air-traffic-control audio recorded by the Post captured authorities saying the man, who “spoke nearly no English,” “changed into all black before he started trying to reach the cockpit” before the flight crew convinced him to head to the rear of the plane. The aircraft landed safely at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport around 11:15 p.m. with no injuries reported, and passengers were taken to the terminal while the pilots stayed locked inside the cockpit. The Post reported, citing local authorities, that Gomez-Alberto stayed on the plane trying to negotiate with police before being arrested without incident; he was booked into the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center on a count of communication of false information of planned arson and terrorizing. Updated reporting Tuesday evening said he had additionally been charged with felony bomb threat, terroristic threats and disorderly conduct, and was being held without bond. The FBI said the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana will determine whether he also faces federal charges, and the FAA said it plans to investigate. The New York Post announced his identification on X alongside the booking image reproduced above.
Public Reaction and Consequences
The reaction reported in the sources ran through official statements rather than any public response from Gomez-Alberto, of which none was reported. A DHS spokesperson told The Post: “Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, criminal illegal aliens are NOT welcome in the United States.” United Airlines confirmed the disruption, saying the plane “landed safely following a disruptive incident involving a passenger onboard,” and the airline identified the aircraft and its 46 passengers and six crew. WWL-TV reported that no injuries were recorded among everyone aboard, and Jefferson Parish Sheriff Joseph Lopinto’s office said the crew’s bomb report triggered the law-enforcement response. The immediate consequences are his booking photo and full name being published nationwide, the hijack-alert response on a full commercial flight, and his detention without bail.
Current Status
As of the November 10, 2026 reporting, Gomez-Alberto remained in the custody of the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, held without bail at the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna on the local charges. No federal charges had been announced; authorities said a bond must first be set in Jefferson Parish before he could face any potential federal prosecution, with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana to decide, and ICE has lodged a detainer. The charges are allegations β he has not been convicted of any crime in this case β and he is presumed innocent as the local case, the detainer, and the possible federal review proceed.
Impact on Their Career/Life
The sources describe no occupation, employer, or public profile for Gomez-Alberto; the concrete consequences reported are his public identification by full name, age and immigration history, his photograph being distributed by news outlets, and his detention without bail while a possible federal prosecution looms β KPEL-FM noted that willfully conveying a false bomb threat is a federal crime carrying up to 10 years in prison, a penalty cited by prosecutors in a 2025 case involving a threat to the same airport, though no federal charge has been filed in his case. His immigration record β two deportations, a third illegal entry, and a January 2020 release ordered by an immigration judge β is now public alongside the ICE detainer lodged the day after his arrest, and no professional or personal consequence beyond custody has been reported because no profession was identified.
Sources
- New York Post, “Illegal immigrant ID’d as United flier accused of bomb threat, hijack attempt β was previously busted by ICE but judge let him go,” November 10, 2026 source
- New York Post, “United flight departing Newark sends out hijack alert after passenger claiming to have bomb attempted to storm cockpit,” November 10, 2026 source
- WDSU, “New Orleans airport arrest: Man claims he had a bomb,” November 10, 2026 source
- NOLA.com, “Man on flight to New Orleans airport said he had a bomb,” November 10, 2026 source
- WWL-TV, “Man accused of claiming he had bomb on plane arrested at New Orleans airport,” November 10, 2026 source
- KPEL-FM, “United Flight Bomb Claim Leads to New Orleans Arrests,” November 10, 2026 source
- @nypost on X, “Illegal immigrant ID’d as United flier accused of bomb threat, hijack attempt…,” November 11, 2026 source