American flight bound for Miami diverted after woman fakes medical condition, police say

Annie Blanks | Pensacola News Journal

Show Caption Hide Caption Thanksgiving 2019: Healthy baby girl born on jetway after plane landed On Wednesday, Nereida Araujo gave birth to a healthy baby girl on the jetway of Flight 868, after the plane landed in Charlotte, North Carolina.

An early morning American Airlines flight from Pensacola, Florida, to Miami had to be diverted back to Pensacola on Friday after a female passenger attempted to fake a medical condition to get a bigger seat on the flight, reports the Pensacola News Journal, which is a part of the USA TODAY Network.

Mike Wood, spokesman with the Pensacola Police Department, said officers were dispatched to the airport at 6:36 a.m. in reference to the incident.

The flight was bound for Miami but had to return to PNS after the woman began faking a medical condition, Wood said.

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The woman refused to leave the plane after it landed, and the rest of the passengers were evacuated from the aircraft. PPD officers and the plane's captain were eventually able to talk the woman into exiting the plane, Wood said.

The woman was taken into custody under the Baker Act "due to some things that she said," Wood added. The Baker Act allows authorities to involuntarily hold a person in a mental health facility for assessment if they suspect that person is an immediate danger to themselves or others.

Criminal charges have not been filed against the woman.

Annie Blanks can be reached at ablanks@pnj.com or 850-435-8632.