A 16-year-old boy recently found himself embroiled in legal trouble after what he described as a misunderstanding led to his arrest for an alleged bomb threat on a Spirit Airlines flight at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Arrested on Monday during a flight bound for Missouri, the teen was accused of a statement that was taken as a threat by fellow passengers. Reporting from WSVN detailed the court proceedings where the young man faced accusations of creating a false alarm.
The teen, whose identity has not been disclosed due to his minor status, was reported to have made the comment in jest, but it was quickly construed as serious by other passengers. According to his attorney, the remarks spiraled out of the context to eventually lead to his arrest. In an effort to clearly explain the gravity of the situation, the judge emphasized, “There is a zero-tolerance policy regarding any sort of bomb threat on any flight. We all have to understand how serious this matter was.” Meanwhile, the accused extended his apologies in court, simply stating, “Your Honor, I just wanted to say that I’m very sorry,” according to WSVN.
At the subsequent juvenile court appearance, a defense attorney and several witnesses came forward to back the defendant’s claim of innocence. “He responded saying something about ‘I have a bomb in my pocket.’ Ms. Evans on the other side of the aisle turned to the boys and said ‘knock it off, you can’t say things like that on a plane,'” the defense attorney recounted. Witnesses also described the teen as regretful immediately after his comment. One of them, Erika Ruiz, reported, “They were clearly teenagers. I never felt threatened,” as described by NBC Miami…