Peruvian man gets one year of pretrial detention for false bomb threat at AILA

Santo Domingo.- At the request of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Judicial Office of Permanent Attention Services of Santo Domingo Este ordered 12 months of preventive detention against a Peruvian national accused of triggering a false air security alert that temporarily disrupted operations at Las Américas International Airport (AILA).

The measure was imposed on Ángel del Pino Cuya, who on January 6, 2026, activated emergency protocols after falsely reporting the presence of an explosive device on Copa Airlines flight CM-299, bound for Panama, while the aircraft was already in flight with passengers and crew on board.

According to the investigation, the alert was made through a phone call to Aeropuertos Dominicanos Siglo XXI (Aerodom), prompting the immediate activation of airport security procedures. These measures included the aircraft’s return, security inspections, the temporary suspension of airport operations, and the diversion of flights to other terminals. Authorities later confirmed that the threat was false.

Prosecutors Andrés Mena and Ana Sánchez argued before the court that preventive detention was necessary to ensure the defendant’s appearance throughout the judicial process. Del Pino Cuya was later located and arrested in the Los Girasoles sector of the National District, where evidence related to the case was seized and incorporated into the investigation.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office stressed that this conduct goes beyond generating public alarm, as it directly affects critical infrastructure and aviation security, placing the case within the scope of national security.

The defendant faces provisional charges for violating articles 3 (paragraph 1, letter e), 63, and 78 of Law 188-11 on Airport and Civil Aviation Security, which penalize unlawful interference and the communication of false information endangering aircraft safety, carrying sentences of 3 to 10 years in prison. He is also accused of violating articles 11 and 30 of Law 267-08 on Terrorism, which provide for penalties of up to 40 years.

By order of Judge Karen Casado Minyety, Del Pino Cuya will serve his pretrial detention at the Las Parras Correction and Rehabilitation Center.