Anthony Kevin Trujillo, Interfering with Flight Crew, California 2023

A California man has been charged with interfering with flight crew members and attendants after a distressing incident on a flight from Los Angeles to Miami.

According to a criminal complaint affidavit, 27-year-old Anthony Kevin Trujillo’s conduct became increasingly disturbing during the flight on July 7. After announcing that he heard a gas leak, Trujillo accused a fellow passenger of storing bomb parts in her socks. He then accused a flight attendant of carrying improvised explosive device components in his bag and tried to wrestle the bag away from him, says the affidavit.

Two air marshals who were on the flight approached Trujillo and the attendant. After ensuring that there were no explosive device components in the flight attendant’s bag, the air marshals attempted to calm the agitated Trujillo. Despite this, Trujillo got up from his seat and charged down the passenger aisle, towards the front of the airplane, it is alleged.

The air marshals stopped Trujillo and, after some resistance from him, eventually secured Trujillo in an area away from other passengers. Air marshals and a flight attendant guarded Trujillo for the rest of the flight. For about the last hour of the flight, pursuant to the captain’s instructions, all passengers had to keep their hands raised above their heads. Law enforcement boarded the plane once it landed at Miami International Airport.

Trujillo is scheduled for a pretrial detention hearing on Friday, July 16, at 10:00 a.m., in Miami federal magistrate court. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

FBI Miami, along with the Transportation Security Administration (Federal Air Marshals) and Miami Dade Police Department, investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Arielle Klepach is prosecuting the case. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of air safety and the potential consequences of disrupting a flight.

Criminal complaints contain mere allegations and defendants are innocent unless and until found guilty in a court of law. Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 21-mj-03385.

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