Twice-deported illegal immigrant identified as United pilot accused of bomb threat and hijacking – and was freed by judge after ICE takedown

The deranged passenger who claimed to have a bomb aboard a United Airlines flight to New Orleans and then tried to rush into the cockpit has been identified as a Honduran illegal migrant twice deported from the United States, immigration officials told The Post.

Rony Alexander Gomez-Alberto, 34, was arrested three times by the Border Patrol for entering the United States illegally, years before he threatened to blow up United Flight 2174 departing from New Jersey on Monday evening, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said.

Immigration officials said Gomez-Alberto, a native of Honduras, was arrested twice in the United States and deported — first in September 2011 near El Indio, Texas, and again in October 2014 in Columbus, New Mexico.

The slippery migrant returned to the United States a third time in 2019 near the border city of San Ysidro in California, where he was arrested again, according to DHS.

But Gomez-Alberto was released from ICE custody in January 2020 after a judge ordered him released pending removal proceedings, authorities said.

His criminal history includes criminal threat to bomb, criminal threat – terrorist offenses and disorderly conduct, according to the DHS spokesperson.

“Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, criminal illegal aliens are NOT welcome in the United States,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

Gomez-Alberto was currently living in the Bronx, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office told NOLA.com.

ICE filed an arrest case for Gomez-Alberto with the sheriff’s office on Tuesday after the aerial incident, according to DHS.

Gomez-Alberto allegedly threatened the United Airlines flight carrying 46 passengers and six crew members Monday evening, claiming he had a bomb as he rushed to the cockpit, according to the airline and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, local affiliate FOX8 reported.

Air traffic control audio revealed the madman was restrained at the rear of the plane after being convinced to move toward the rear by the flight crew to allow the plane to land safely in New Orleans.

“He turned completely black before he started trying to reach the cockpit,” local authorities hear in the audio recording.

Cops arrested Alberto-Gomez after the plane landed at Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans.

He was charged with communicating false information about a planned arson and acts of terror, according to court records.

Gomez-Alberto is being held without bail at the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center, according to authorities.

The plane’s crew and passengers arrived safely at the airport around 11:15 p.m., according to a United Airlines spokesperson.

This is a developing story. Please check again for updates.