A Texas man was arrested after allegedly using another passenger's ticket photo to board a Delta flight in Utah, authorities said.
Wycliffe Eve Fleurizar, 26, is charged with stowaway on an airplane after boarding Delta Flight 1683 bound for Austin, Texas, on March 17 at Salt Lake City International Airport.
Furlizard was in Utah for a snowboarding trip and was returning to his home in George, Texas, to visit family from Florida, according to a felony complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Utah.
He had booked a flight on Southwest Airlines, but it was later rebooked because it was full.
Instead of waiting for his next Southwest Airlines flight, he entered the Delta area of the airport and was caught on surveillance footage taking photos of multiple passengers' cell phones and boarding passes while they weren't looking. It was reflected. He then used the photos on his cell phone to finally board his Flight 1683.
Fleurizal boarded the plane, went into the toilet at the front of the plane while others were on board, and spent “a significant amount of time” there.
Once boarding was complete, Full Lizard headed to the toilet in the back.
As Mr. Fleurizal deplaned, a flight attendant noticed there were no empty seats on the plane and approached him. However, at that point, the aircraft's doors were secured and the aircraft began taxiing toward the runway.
Fleurizal told the flight attendant that his seat was on the 21st floor, but the flight attendant confirmed that the 21st floor belonged to someone else.
Flight attendants took his name but were unable to find a valid ticket or reservation for that or any other Delta flight.
The plane eventually returned to the gate, Furlizard deplaned, and was met by police.
Authorities interviewed a Delta Airlines gate agent who said the unaccompanied minor female passenger had a problem when the gate agent tried to scan her ticket. She scanned her boarding pass and the system showed she was already boarding. Furlizard was seen on surveillance camera footage taking cell phone photos of the girl.
He told authorities he was given a Southwest Buddy Pass ticket for March 16, but was rebooked for March 17 because there were no seats available on the flight. The second flight ended up being overbooked and was rebooked for later on the same day. However, Full Lizard ended up leaving the southwest boarding area and entering the Delta area.
“Furrizal admitted he had made a mistake and was simply trying to get home,” the complaint states.
TSA said Furlizard was screened at the airport on March 17 using a photo ID that matched the name on his boarding pass and was screened without incident.
Delta Air Lines said it is cooperating with law enforcement and federal agencies in the investigation.
Fulllizard has an active warrant out of Austin, Texas, according to court documents. The purpose of the warrant is unclear, but Austin police flagged him as a “person with 'violent tendencies.'”
He is being held in federal custody in Salt Lake County, according to online booking records.
It was not immediately clear whether Fleurizard had hired an attorney.
