News

Oct 11, 2023

Police: Man hid in plane's landing gear at Houston Airport

Authorities say this wasn't the man's first attempt to stow away on a plane

Authorities say this wasn't the man's first attempt to stow away on a plane leaving Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport.

A Guatemalan man is being held in Harris County Jail on $1 million bond after allegedly attempting to stow away in the landing gear compartment of a plane leaving Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Harris County prosecutors claim in court documents that Jehffrey Gutirres, 26, entered a restricted area at Bush Airport in late May and tried to hide in the landing gear compartment of an American Airlines flight bound for Chicago, according to Houston Public Media's Adam Zuvanich. The flight was delayed by nearly 45 minutes and passengers had to deplane after Gutirres was found, according to Zuvanich's reporting.

Prosecutors allege that this wasn't the first time Gutirres attempted a stowaway flight. According to Zuvanich's Monday dispatch, Gutirres came to the U.S. in November of last year by hiding in the landing gear compartment of an American Airlines flight from Guatemala to Miami.

Gutirres was out of jail on bond for a criminal trespassing charge at the same airport when he was arrested for his stowaway attempt. Prosecutors said in court documents that he removed a court-ordered electronic monitoring device and ignored a judge's order to stay at least 200 feet away from Bush Intercontinental when he made his most recent attempt, per HPM's Zuvanich.

"The defendant then engaged in conduct that not only violated the conditions set for his release on bond, but he placed 166 passengers on American Airlines flight 1551 in grave danger by stowing away in a compartment within the aircraft containing critical steering cables and hydraulic components," prosecutors allege in court documents, according to HPM's Zuvanich."... The defendant's conduct is also an extreme act for the purpose of escaping from this jurisdiction to avoid prosecution, as he would now be in Chicago, Illinois rather than Harris County if he had succeeded."

Prosecutors have charged Gutirres with one felony and two misdemeanors. He will have a GPS monitor attached to his person and ordered to stay 1,000 feet from all airports if he posts bail, according to Zuvanich.

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