Julio Alvarez Lopez: Alaska Airlines passenger who tried to kill co-passenger with makeshift weapon says he planned attack to escape 'mafia'
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA: In a harrowing incident that unfolded on an Alaska Airlines flight from Seattle to Las Vegas last month, a fellow passenger, Julio Alvarez Lopez, stands accused of orchestrating a chilling mid-air plot to attack and kill a fellow traveler using a makeshift weapon.
Lopez, charged with one count of assault with a dangerous weapon, was apprehended at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas on January 24, as reported by 8NewsNow, citing federal court records.
Julio Alvarez Lopez's mid-air assault on passenger
The alarming mid-flight altercation began with Lopez's peculiar behavior, described as "fidgety," as he continuously put on and removed his gloves. During the flight's initial descent, the suspect spent an extended period in the bathroom, raising suspicions among fellow passengers.
Upon returning to his seat, the situation escalated rapidly as Lopez allegedly "began punching and hitting" a man seated across the aisle, attempting to stab him in the eye, according to witnesses and court documents.
"During the altercation, [the victim’s] wife was screaming at the defendant to stop hitting her husband,” an FBI agent wrote. “[A witness] unbuckled her seatbelt and yelled at the defendant to stop." Lopez reportedly struck the victim's wife, who shielded their 7-year-old son from the violent rampage.
Blood was reportedly everywhere, and witnesses described a 'pen and tape bundle' dropping to the floor during the chaos. Despite the severity of the attack, the male victim survived but sustained significant injuries.
Alaska Airlines passenger admits to preplanned attack
After the altercation, Lopez made his way to the front of the plane, screaming, "I'll only talk to the FBI." Law enforcement on board swiftly ordered him to sit down, and the flight crew worked to restrain the suspect with flex cuffs for the remainder of the flight.
Upon landing, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police arrested Lopez and held him at a substation in Terminal 3 for questioning. He admitted to officers that he had planned the attack because he "felt the mafia had been chasing him," claiming he had never seen the victim “but planned on killing [him].”
Armed with pens wrapped in rubber bands, created before the flight, Lopez's premeditated assault shocked investigators. US Magistrate Judge Nancy Koppe ordered the suspect detained pending trial the next day.
A federal grand jury indicted Lopez on the assault charge on Wednesday, February 21, and he is scheduled to appear in court on March 1.
