AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File
- A man who jumped out of a plane told authorities he purchased "a lot" meth days before.
- Luis Armano Victoria Dominguez was charged for opening the exit door of a plan at LAX, according to court documents.
- He faces up to 20 years in prison.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
A 33-year-old man charged for jumping out of a plane at an airport in Los Angeles, California, told authorities that he bought $20 worth of meth, the Washington Post reported.
Luis Armano Victoria Dominguez was charged with interference with flight members and attendants after an incident on a United Airlines flight 5365 departing from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Salt Lake City, Utah, on Friday, according to the Department of Justice.
According to a criminal complaint viewed by Insider, a fellow passenger sitting next to him on the flight said he told her that he would jump out of the plane as it was about to take off. Victoria Dominguez is accused of knocking on the cockpit door, opening the emergency exit, and hopping out of the plane. He was arrested at the airport and transferred to the hospital after injuring his right leg.
During an interview with the FBI at the hospital, he said he arrived in Los Angeles from Mexico earlier in the week. He wanted to head to Salt Lake City, but he ended up at a hotel downtown near a bus station on Tuesday, according to the complaint, due to not having a connecting flight.
He told authorities that he paid $20 to an unidentified person for "a lot" of meth and drank multiple beers, according to the complaint.
Victoria Dominguez went to a different hotel on Wednesday and said he smoked throughout the day. He decided to take a flight to Utah instead of a bus, the complaint said. When Thursday came, he smoked more meth and headed to LAX but missed his flight.
On Friday, he returned to the airport and missed his original afternoon flight. He got on the 6:30 p.m. aircraft where the incident occurred, the complaint stated.
According to the complaint, Victoria Dominguez told authorities he was going to sleep on the plane while coming down from being under the influence all week when he overheard other passengers behind him saying the plane is not headed to Utah, leading him into a "panic."
"Victoria Dominguez further stated that perhaps his panic attack gave him the strength to open the door," the complaint said.
He faces 20 years in prison, according to the DOJ.