Pan American Flight 281 Hijacker Sentenced

NEWSROOM


Pan American Flight 281 Hijacker Sentenced By Shane Nolan

		January 5, 2011 - Luis Armando Peña Soltren was sentenced on Tuesday to 15 years in prison for his participation in the November 24, 1968, hijacking of Puerto Rico bound Pan American flight 281 to Havana, Cuba. After almost 41 years as a fugitive, Peña Soltren, 67, a U.S. citizen, voluntarily returned to the United States in October 2009 and surrendered to federal authorities. Peña Soltren pled guilty in March before U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: "Today’s sentence of Luis Armando Pena Soltren for the violent hijacking in which he participated more than four decades ago should send a strong message that we will vindicate the interests of justice no matter how long it takes.

This was a heinous crime and the punishment is appropriate. It is another example of our commitment to working with our partners at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Justice's Office of International Affairs, and the Department of State Bureau of Diplomatic Security, to bring criminals to justice wherever they may seek refuge and regardless of the passage of time." According to the Complaint and Indictment previously filed in Manhattan federal court and the guilty plea proceeding on November 24, 1968, Peña Soltren, along with coconspirators Jose Rafael Rios Cruz and Miguel Castro, boarded Pan American flight 281 bound for San Juan, Puerto Rico. After the airplane took flight, the defendants, wielding pistols and knives, forced their way into the cabin of the airplane and ordered the crew to land in Havana, Cuba. Cruz, 69, was apprehended in 1975 and Castro, 80, was apprehended in 1976. Both ultimately pled guilty to threatening the lives of flight crew members. Cruz and Castro were sentenced to 15 years in prison and 12 years in prison, respectively, for their roles in the Pan American flight 281 hijacking. Alejandro Figueroa, who was charged as a co-conspirator in the case, was acquitted in 1969 after a bench-trial before U.S. District Judge Edward Weinfeld. Peña Soltren pled guilty on March 18, 2010, to the following charges: (1) conspiracy to commit air piracy, to interfere with flight crew members, and to kidnap; (2) interfering with flight crew members; and (3) kidnapping. During the sentencing proceeding, U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein described PEÑA Soltren's actions as "considerably more serious" than those of his co-conspirators.

		This case was the result of the coordinated efforts of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of State, and the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of International Affairs. Mr. Bharara thanked them for their outstanding work. Other News Stories Northrop Completes Second Flight Test Phase Of The MR-TCDL Relief Flight With Medical Supplies Headed To Pakistan’s Flood Victims SkyWest Purchases Four CRJ700 NextGen Regional Jets FAA Approves ToughWriter Flight Deck Printer On The Boeing 767 Aircraft World Fuel Services Completes Acquisition Of The Hiller Group The Association Of Flight Attendants Has New Leadership FAA Light-Sport Aircraft Safety Seminar-2011 Honda Achieves First Flight Of FAA Conforming HondaJet International Passengers Are Entitled To Compensation For Tarmac Delays Sex Flights Gets Grounded By The Civil Aviation Authority NTSB To Review Emergency Certificate Actions Regulations Russian Jet Burst Into A Ball Of Fire Just Before Takeoff Flight Design Seeking New Representatives To Better Serve Customers Wayne County Airport Saves Millions Trough Bond Refinancing NTSB Update On Jackson Hole B-757 Runway Overrun Incident Passenger Jet Flight 2253 Fails To Stop After Landing - This New Year's Eve Don't Drink And Drive Put Safety First AeroVironment Receives Order For 123 Raven Unmanned Aircraft GE’s 1000th Dowty Propeller System Makes First Flight On C-130J American Airlines Provides Update On Disputes With Orbitz And Expedia Boeing Delivers First 737 Sky Interior To Continental Airlines Alfred E. Kahn “Father of Airline Deregulation" Dies At 93 Busted At The Airport With 49 Pellets Of Heroin In His Stomach Fighting Fires In Ecuador With The Flight Design CTLS Garmin Receives EASA Approval On The G1000 Equipped King Air 200 FAA Proposes Fines Against American Eagle And Continental Airlines Boeing Resumes Flight Testing On The 787 After An Electrical Fire Cocaine Concealed Inside Easter Eggs Onboard LAX Flight Allegiant Air Flight Attendants Vote For Union Representation Puerto Rico Army Guard Aviation UH-72 Lakota Helicopter Goes Down Guns Drugs Money Smuggled Through ATL Atlanta Airport All Airline Passengers Now Screened Against Government Watchlists American Airlines Flights No Longer Available On Orbitz Grizzly 4, Airbus Military A400M Makes First Flight