Passenger's Fake Bomb Threat on Flight Linked to Cartel Escape Plan

A passenger on an Alaska Airlines flight was arrested for making a false bomb threat, claiming he did so to evade members of a drug cartel who were out to get him. The passenger handed a note to a flight attendant stating that there was a bomb on the plane and threatened to detonate it if the plane landed in Seattle. The flight was diverted to Spokane, where the passenger was arrested. No explosive devices were found on the plane. The passenger stated that he wanted to be arrested to avoid the cartel, as he believed they would torture and kill him upon landing in Seattle.