Houston Man Charged with Using Fraudulent Boarding Pass at George Bush Intercontinental Airport

A Houston man, Abdulrahman Oluwatumike Oriyomi, has been charged with impairing or interrupting the operation of a critical infrastructure facility following an incident on May 18. According to the criminal complaint filed in Harris County, Oriyomi used a fraudulent boarding pass to board a United Airlines flight at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, leading the aircraft to return to the gate.

The Defendant delayed a flight for 3 hours with a full plane.

Prosecutors sought a $25,000 bond, stating that the incident delayed a flight carrying passengers for approximately three hours and triggered responses from multiple agencies. These included the Houston Police Department, the FBI, Houston Airports, and the TSA.

The complaint reveals that Oriyomi attempted to scan a boarding pass at one gate unsuccessfully, but later proceeded through another gate where United employees were distracted. He boarded United Flight 469 after waiting for airline staff to be occupied.

A passenger noted that Oriyomi initially sat next to her, but then switched seats. Flight attendants later discovered someone inside a restroom who had no verified seat on the flight. Investigators checked the passenger manifest and found no passenger entry under Oriyomi’s name.

The aircraft returned to the gate, prompting law enforcement intervention. Reviewing a boarding pass image from Oriyomi’s phone, authorities determined it was fake due to missing information and a QR code. It was concluded by a Bush Airport representative that Oriyomi could not have obtained a valid pass without payment.

Further conditions requested by prosecutors included surrendering travel documents, avoiding airports, refraining from possessing firearms, and potential electronic monitoring.

United Airlines, Houston Airports, and the TSA did not provide comments. The pending case is in Harris County’s 180th District Court, with no attorney identified for Oriyomi.