Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- A Texas man was sentenced to supervised release for unlawfully boarding a Delta flight last year.
- The man took pictures of another passengers' boarding pass to get onto the plane without a ticket.
- Officials called the action a breach of security that endangered the crew and passengers.
SALT LAKE CITY — A Texas man who admitted to sneaking onto a Delta Air Lines flight last year and hiding in the bathroom was sentenced to three years of supervised release for unlawfully boarding an aircraft.
Wicliff Yves Fleurizard, 27, of Leander, Texas, was sentenced in federal court last month to prison, but the judge determined he had already fulfilled the prison sentence with about six months he spent incarcerated while his case was pending. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine.
Fleurizard pleaded guilty in March where he admitted he intentionally boarded a plane that he had not purchased a ticket for and was not authorized to be on. He said his actions caused the plane to return to the gate so he could be met by law enforcement and taken into custody, a U.S. Attorney's Office for Utah statement said.
On March 17, 2024, Fleurizard boarded a Delta flight in Salt Lake City headed for Austin, Texas. After getting on the plane, Fleurizard was spotted opening the door to the emergency equipment storage area, according to charging documents. A flight attendant then directed Fleurizard to the bathroom at the front of the plane.
"Fleurizard spent a significant amount of time in the lavatory while others were boarding, and he did not lock the door while occupying the lavatory. After boarding was complete and just before the aircraft doors were secured, Fleurizard exited the front lavatory and made his way to the back of the aircraft and entered the (back) lavatory," according to the charges.
When he got out of the bathroom, all the seats on the plane were full. Fleurizard claimed he was in a seat that was already occupied, but a flight attendant confirmed that it was not Fleurizard's seat, the charges state.
Upon further investigation by searching his name, the flight attendants "were unable to locate a valid ticket or booking reservation for him." The plane was forced to return to the gate where police were waiting for Fleurizard.
Fleurizard was seen on surveillance footage taking photos of multiple passengers' personal information when they weren't looking while in the boarding area. He successfully used a picture of a girl's boarding pass to enter the plane, the charges state.
Fleurizard told police he he had been on a snowboarding trip to Park City, but needed to get home to Texas because his family was scheduled to visit from Florida. He was supposed to fly on a buddy pass on Southwest Airlines. But there were no available seats when he first attempted to fly home on March 16, and his rebooked flight the next day was overbooked so he was not able to get on that one either, according to the charges.
"Fleurizard admitted he had made a mistake and was only trying get home," the charges say.
Fleurizard successfully used the method of obtaining electronic boarding passes from others to board airplanes in both Austin and Salt Lake City, federal prosecutors said.
"Mr. Fleurizard's actions were not only disruptive to passengers, it also compromised the safety and security for all on board," said Mehtab Syed, special agent in charge of the FBI Salt Lake office. "The sentence holds him accountable for trespassing, theft and fraud."
At least two other stowaways were caught on Delta flights last year.
