Massachusetts Man Sentenced Time Served After Mid-Flight Attack Attempt

Francisco Severo Torres, a 35-year-old Massachusetts man, was sentenced to time served—26 months in prison—after pleading guilty to attempting to open an emergency exit door and attacking a flight attendant with a broken metal spoon on a United Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Boston in March 2023. Torres tampered with the exit door about 45 minutes before landing, prompting a flight attendant to confront him, after which he made threats to passengers and crew and stabbed a flight attendant in the neck three times with the spoon. He was restrained by crew and passengers until the plane landed safely in Boston, where he was arrested. No major injuries occurred, and Torres' actions were linked to a history of mental health issues. As part of his sentence, Torres will remain under supervised release for five years and is prohibited from flying commercially during that period. The incident raised concerns about in-flight security and the management of passengers with known mental health issues.