Arrested on board
Jun 8, 2018, 7:08 am
#16
Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club, easyJet and Ryanair
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: UK/Las Vegas
Programs: BA Gold (GGL/CCR)
Posts: 15,922
... I well recall a KLM service into LHR about a year ago. The Dutch can be wonderfully direct, so the announcement went "Ladies and gentlemen, please remain seated. There will be a short delay since the UK police want to arrest a passenger, so remain seated, your cooperation would be appreciated". Two second pause. "Could Mrs X kindly press the call bell?"
That's could easily be a sketch on Little Britain!
Jun 8, 2018, 7:27 am
#17
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 756
This actually makes sense. I wish they'd done that a few years ago on a BA service into LHR from AMS, I swapped ET seats with someone (his party had got split up somehow, and it was just moving one row forward from aisle seat to aisle seat). He was arrested in his seat upon arrival, but not before the police tried to arrest me!
Which made me wonder: are CC notified ahead of time, or is it a surprise for them upon arrival?
Which made me wonder: are CC notified ahead of time, or is it a surprise for them upon arrival?
Jun 8, 2018, 8:08 am
#18
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: SW London
Programs: BAEC Silver; Hilton Diamond;a miscellany of other hotel non-statuses
Posts: 3,607
...I've seen similar at EDI, where a group of uniformed officers were waiting at the gate and a passenger disembarking same aircraft as me sauntered over to them to be arrested. Seemed strange, but very civilised.
Jun 8, 2018, 8:14 am
#19
Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 10,139
Police at the gate is actually quite a common daily routine for many reasons and not always to arrest someone. Nowadays it's relatively easy to track someone's flight patterns, if they're of interest to the UK/Eurpoean authorities etc or wanted on a Warrant.
It also used to be the case that live human organs were flown in from other parts of the UK and escorted in a Traffic car with bike escorts, roads blocked en-route into the old Edinburgh Royal Infirmary/Sick Children's hospital where transplant teams were waiting.
It also used to be the case that live human organs were flown in from other parts of the UK and escorted in a Traffic car with bike escorts, roads blocked en-route into the old Edinburgh Royal Infirmary/Sick Children's hospital where transplant teams were waiting.
Jun 8, 2018, 8:22 am
#20
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 5,596
The authorities may not know the offender is on the flight at departure. I had a passenger caught smoking in the forward toilet. The cabin crew reoved his passport and promised him if he behaved from then on he would get it back when we landed. I called ahead on the HF radio and reported the passenger for smoking. 20 minutes later the selcal was bing bonging furiously. Imagine my surprise to find out the passenger was wanted in Germany under a European arrest warrant.If he hadn't had a quick cig nobody would be any the wiser.Obviously a criminal mastermind.
Jun 8, 2018, 9:59 am
#22
Moderator: British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Jan 2009
Programs: Battleaxe Alliance
Posts: 22,127
Someone got arrested on arrival after smoking on board from OTP to LHR on BA. I think she realised the seriousness of what she did after she was handcuffed as she was sobbing her eyes out as she was being led off the aircraft by burly policemen (at least 4 of them were involved as I recall.).
Jun 8, 2018, 12:05 pm
#23
Join Date: May 2017
Location: Glasgow and Asia
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hotels.com Gold
Posts: 510
Police at the gate is actually quite a common daily routine for many reasons and not always to arrest someone. Nowadays it's relatively easy to track someone's flight patterns, if they're of interest to the UK/Eurpoean authorities etc or wanted on a Warrant.
It also used to be the case that live human organs were flown in from other parts of the UK and escorted in a Traffic car with bike escorts, roads blocked en-route into the old Edinburgh Royal Infirmary/Sick Children's hospital where transplant teams were waiting.
It also used to be the case that live human organs were flown in from other parts of the UK and escorted in a Traffic car with bike escorts, roads blocked en-route into the old Edinburgh Royal Infirmary/Sick Children's hospital where transplant teams were waiting.
Q? Whats in the Box?
Me: samples from the childrens' unit to be analysed in my lab. Show staff badge with Dr on it as kind of backup. No Problem, and why don't you go to the lounge for a cup of tea while you're waiting for the flight. I said, I'm only flying ET and NO Status, but she was always insistent on both occasions.
Probably couldn't do that now without a lot of paperwork.
Jun 8, 2018, 12:15 pm
#24
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 2,233
Jun 8, 2018, 12:32 pm
#25
Join Date: Jul 2014
Programs: Mucci de l'Arbitrage
Posts: 927
Or are you saying that technically -assuming he had no criminal record- he would have received his passport back, before being arrested?
Jun 8, 2018, 12:45 pm
#26
Join Date: Nov 2016
Posts: 699
as i commute on very regular basis between BRU and HEA i already faced several times that when the plane lands in London everybody has to keep the seatbelt fastend. Then th purser or cabin crew member walks to a person on board and takes him from the plane where the british police takes the person in custody.
what surprises me as the customer himselve is not aware of the fact. Why is he not taken in custody in Brussels?
what surprises me as the customer himselve is not aware of the fact. Why is he not taken in custody in Brussels?
just does my head in 👍😂
Jun 8, 2018, 1:17 pm
#27
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 5,596
The cabin crew were truthful. They had no knowledge of the arrest warrant at the time. He was also given his passport back, where it was promptly removed by the arresting officer.
Jun 8, 2018, 2:00 pm
#28
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 344
I also know of a friend who shares the same name as someone on some kind of 'list' - he frequently gets pulled (completely innocently) just to verify he is not the mega criminal sharing the same name as him! That would annoy me after a while, good job he's not a frequent flyer!
Jun 8, 2018, 8:39 pm
#29
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: SoCal (ONT), PVD/BOS, JAX, RSW
Programs: AA/US PlatPro & 1.05MM, DL Plat (challenge), UA dirt
Posts: 3,189
Speaking of arrests, this past Thursday, I was flying ARN-FRA (I know, not BA) but just before boarding, 4 Swedish Migration Police officials brought one person on board the aircraft. Upon leaving the aircraft in FRA, there were 4 Bundespolizei officers waiting on the jetway for the same individual. Somehow, I don't think that it was a normal deportation.
A few years ago, on the other hand, I was on LHR-BOS and a woman was brought on by police and her passport was handed over to the cabin crew. On arrival into BOS, we had to remain seated as CBP and US Marshals boarded and took her off, although it was done quietly through stairs attached at 5L as those of us in window seats got to see her being put into an unmarked car and driven away.
A few years ago, on the other hand, I was on LHR-BOS and a woman was brought on by police and her passport was handed over to the cabin crew. On arrival into BOS, we had to remain seated as CBP and US Marshals boarded and took her off, although it was done quietly through stairs attached at 5L as those of us in window seats got to see her being put into an unmarked car and driven away.
Jun 8, 2018, 8:47 pm
#30
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: UK
Programs: AA Platinum Pro, HHonors Diamond
Posts: 174
as i commute on very regular basis between BRU and HEA i already faced several times that when the plane lands in London everybody has to keep the seatbelt fastend. Then th purser or cabin crew member walks to a person on board and takes him from the plane where the british police takes the person in custody.
what surprises me as the customer himselve is not aware of the fact. Why is he not taken in custody in Brussels?
what surprises me as the customer himselve is not aware of the fact. Why is he not taken in custody in Brussels?
The 'customer' (Subject) will probably know that they're Wanted; most wanted persons feign having any knowledge of what they're accused of.
When a Subject is Wanted they're circulated as such on the Police National Computer. When a passenger travels their details are recorded and checked against all manner of Law Enforcement databases, including the PNC. If they're wanted then the port of entry is advised and the local police will make an intervention to arrest them and put them before the courts (or transfer them to the Force which needs to speak to them as appropriate). Subjects can only be arrested abroad if a European Arrest Warrant is in place, and in the UK we only tend to do this for either very serious cases, or where we have specific intelligence to suggest they're abroad (other countries, especially in Eastern Europe, will circulate literally anything on an EAW - I've had one for theft of pedal cycle before!) which might explain why they're not nicked in Brussels.... Although I've no idea what sort of entry/exit checks Brussels will carry out, nor their policies for intervening etc.
The reason the arrest is [usually] carried out on the plane is that the Subject is well contained and easy to locate and secure, whereas if they're allowed to disembark this could result in them not being identified as they pass through other areas of the airport (such as Immigration or Customs etc).
Happy to answer any other specific questions (where not operationally sensitive).