The Qatari diplomat, Mohammed al Modadi, who caused a midair security scare aboard a United Airlines flight between Washington DC and Denver, isn't going to face charges after "joking" he was trying to light his shoes on fire. He was apparently smoking in the restroom (against federal regulations would ordinarily be subject to fines and criminal sanction), and then joked about setting his shoes alight.
Diplomatic immunity is the key here. He gets to avoid jail for his stupidity and arrogance, but we should be thankful that the federal air marshals intervened and the flight crew did the right thing. They had no way to know at the time the incident occurred what the man's intentions were.
Modadi has since been released from law enforcement custody and is on his way back to Washington.
No comments:
Post a Comment