By Gordon Williams, Star Writer
AT LEAST ONE person has already tried, and failed, to breach Spirit's security system, mere days after the airline started service between the United States and Jamaica.
The man was handcuffed and escorted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers from Spirit's flight 710 shortly after it landed at the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport in Florida on Monday evening.
U.S. authorities identified him as a deportee trying to re-enter the U.S. illegally. He was subsequently detained and sent back to Jamaica the following day.
As flight 710 taxied towards the gate in Fort Lauderdale, an announcement was made advising passengers to remain seated after the plane stopped as U.S. law enforcement officers would be boarding.
The announcement sparked a buzz of conversation throughout the cabin as passengers, including some who had been on Spirit's first Fort Lauderdale-to-Kingston flight on Thursday, November. 10, wondered what was the reason for the procedure. They then looked on as two uniformed and armed officers marched down the aisle to remove the deportee from the aircraft.
"Dem a put on the bangle pon him," a male passenger remarked after watching the officers handcuff the suspect.
The deportee appeared to be in his 20s, is of dark complexion and was wearing a white T-shirt and blue jeans. He was seated to the rear of the plane and offered no noticeable resistance. However, he carried a resigned and somewhat embarrassed facial expression as he exited the plane.
U.S. authorities declined to name the man or offer specific details about his offence.
"We don't provide (passengers') names or reasons for deportation," Zachary Mann, a special agent and spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Yesterday, Mann explained that "the individual was a prior deportee and he was arriving back into the United States under false pretences. He was taken off the aircraft, processed and then sent back (to Jamaica) today."
A spokesperson for Spirit said the airline's Fort Lauderdale team was contacted on Monday by U.S. immigration authorities and informed that they wanted to board the inbound flight from Kingston to Fort Lauderdale.
"Of course, we fully cooperated," said Rebecca Rivera, Spirit's communications manager, yesterday afternoon.
The airline also declined to release the name of the deportee, and Rivera said she did not know why the man was taken from the plane.
According to Mann, airlines landing in the U.S. usually provide Customs and Border Protection - in advance - a manifest of passengers on board. That list is then reviewed to determine if there are passengers who were not welcome in the U.S. for any reason.
"There are a lot of ways people try to sneak into the country," Mann said.
Gordon Williams is a Jamaican journalist based in the United States.
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