California man sentenced after causing emergency landing at KCI
PLATTE COUNTY, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- A California man was sentenced to two years in prison for assaulting a police officer after an in-flight disturbance, leading to an emergency landing at the Kansas City International Airport.
A Platte County jury had earlier convicted Juan Remberto Rivas, Jr. of assaulting a law enforcement officer and attempting to escape from custody following a three-day trial in March.
Rivas was a passenger on an American Airlines flight carrying 150 passengers, which departed from Los Angeles on February 13, 2022. The flight was headed to Washington, D.C.
During the flight, Rivas attempted to open a passenger door of the Boeing 737 and voiced threats to kill passengers on the plane.
Other passengers subdued Rivas, and the plane made an emergency landing at KCI. Upon landing, federal and state law enforcement officers took Rivas into custody.
Prosecutors proved at trial that, while being escorted to a police car to be taken to the Platte County Detention Center, Rivas broke free of his handcuffs and assaulted a KCI Airport police officer.
The officer suffered a sprained hand and was forced to wear a splint for two weeks.
Rivas was sentenced to two years in prison for second degree assault of a law enforcement officer and one year in jail for attempting to escape from custody. The sentences will run concurrently.
Rivas had also been charged in United States District Court with interfering with flight crewmembers for his actions aboard the flight. He pleaded guilty and received a 19-month federal sentence.
“This defendant had already pleaded guilty to what he did in the air during this flight," Platte County Prosecuting Attorney, Eric Zahnd said. "Nevertheless, in Platte County, we will hold anyone who assaults a police officer accountable. Mr. Rivas will now serve time in Missouri prison after he completes his federal sentence.”
The case was investigated by the Kansas City International Airport Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Zachary McKnight and First Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Mark Gibson.
