A man allegedly snuck onto a United Airlines flight from Houston to Los Angeles with a fake boarding pass, forcing the plane to return to the gate.
Surveillance footage showed Abdulrahman Oluwatumike Oriyomi, 25, boarding United flight 469 from George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) on May 18 after waiting for “United employees to be preoccupied with other passengers,” according to a complaint filed in Harris County District Court in Texas on June 1.
Oriyomi allegedly attempted to find a seat on the plane before hiding in the bathroom, a witness said, according to the complaint. When the fellow passenger reported his presence to flight attendants before takeoff, he gave them a false name, the court documents said. The plane’s crew then realized he was not on the flight manifest and the plane returned to the gate.
United referred a request for comment to law enforcement, while an attorney listed for Oriyomi did not immediately respond to a separate request for comment.
Prior to boarding the flight, Oriyomi could be seen in the footage speaking with Transportation Security Administration agents and having “possible difficulty with his boarding pass,” according to the complaint, but was permitted to go through the security checkpoint. He tried to board another flight to Los Angeles first, unsuccessfully attempting to scan a boarding pass multiple times, and was turned away.
“TSA can confirm that on May 18, 2026, the individual in question presented a valid boarding pass at George Bush Intercontinental Airport,” the agency told USA TODAY in an emailed statement. “The individual did go through standard screening and did not possess any prohibited items.”
Oriyomi gave Houston police a United confirmation number, but an airline customer service representative said the booking had been canceled because payment had not been made, per the complaint. Authorities also determined the QR code on his boarding pass appeared to be forged.
TSA did not immediately respond to a follow-up question about whether the boarding pass was the same one that was later shared with police.
“Officers with the Houston Police Department, the FBI, and H.A.S. were tied up on this significant event for over an hour and a half due to Defendant Oriyomi’s intentional and unauthorized entry into the airport and airline by false representation,” the complaint said. “United flight number 469 was also delayed by approximately 3 hours.”
He was charged with impairing or interrupting operation of critical infrastructure facility.
This story was updated to add new information.
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.
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