Man found guilty after posing as flight attendant to get over 100 free flights
It's the real life Catch Me If You Can, after a Florida man who jibbed his way onto 120 free flights by posing as a member of cabin crew was finally caught by authorities this week.
Between the hours of 2018 and 2024, Tiron Alexander had managed to access the website for four different airline careers, through which he declared himself a flight attendant.
As such, the 35-year-old was able to access a vast plethora of employee benefits, including both free and heavily discounted flights.
According to a statement released this week by the United States attorney for the Southern District of Florida, however, Alexander has since been apprehended for his crimes.
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On 5 June, he was convicted of wire fraud, paired with the con-man having entered a secure area of an airport via false pretences, the initial investigation into both of which exposed his six-year-long criminal history.
Amongst the lengthy list of airlines that Alexander had tricked were the likes of Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, and Delta Air Lines.
With one airline, he'd conned his way onto a staggering total of 34 different flights, claiming each time to have been either a flight attendant or a staff member. To do so, he used 30 different badge numbers, and an array of various dates of hire to purchase his $0 flight. Alexander used the same controversial tactic with three other airlines to book even more journeys.
The con man is set to be sentenced on 25 August, and could face the maximum penalty of 20 years for wire fraud. Alexander could also face a further 10 years for entering no-access areas of airports with his false persona.
A spokesperson for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) told press of his conviction in a statement: "While Alexander was able to board flights by fraudulently obtaining a boarding pass, he underwent all applicable TSA security procedures, including ID verification and physical screening, and did not pose a threat to other airline passengers.
"TSA remains dedicated to the security of the flying public and will continue to support the prosecution of those who break air travel laws."
According to Pubity, Alexander was inspired to fake his way onto the vast roster of flights through his time working in ticketing for Delta Airways.
Employed there between 2010 and 2012, he went on to serve as a legitimate flight attendant for two different smaller carriers, with experts believing his experience would have assisted with his seamless bypass of security.
After the news was shared online, a bunch of movie buffs couldn't help but compare Alexander's crimes to those exhibited by Leonardo Di Caprio's Catch Me If You Can character Frank Abagnale Jr. in the 2002 crime-comedy.
For those in need of a reminder, the Steven Spielberg hit sees Frank con his way to millions of dollars by posing as a Pan American World Airways pilot, a Georgia doctor, and a Louisiana parish prosecutor.
Commenting on the parallels, one social media user joked of Alexander: "Catch him, if you can!"
"Flight attendant version of 'Catch Me If You Can'," another agreed.
Topics: Flight attendant, US News, Travel, Crime
Rhianna Benson