FBI investigating death on Royal Caribbean cruise after alleged incident with unruly passenger
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(LOS ANGELES) — The FBI is investigating an incident aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship allegedly involving an unruly passenger.
The incident took place Friday aboard the Navigator of the Seas, which was sailing from Ensenada, Baja California, to Los Angeles, officials said.
The unidentified passenger allegedly became unruly and crew members were called in, according to witnesses.
A video of the incident showed crew members restraining the man on the floor with towels.
It is unclear when the man died after being restrained.
“The FBI responded to a Royal Caribbean cruise on Monday when it docked in Los Angeles and is investigating an incident on board that resulted in death,” the FBI said in a statement.
Royal Caribbean Cruises released a statement after the incident, saying, “We are saddened by the passing of one of our guests. We offered support to the family and are working with authorities on their investigation.”
(PHILADELPHIA) — At least seven people were killed and 19 others injured after a medical transport plane, carrying a child, her mother and four other people, crashed in Philadelphia Friday night near a busy mall, according to city officials.
Everyone aboard the flight was killed in the crash and one person was killed on the ground, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said at a press conference Saturday.
The Learjet 55 crashed near the Roosevelt Mall in northeast Philadelphia around 6:30 p.m. after departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to authorities.
“Many people on the ground — in parking lots, on streets, in cars and homes in the area — were injured,” the office of Mayor Parker said Saturday. “A number of people were transported to Temple University Hospital, Jeans Campus in the Northeast.”
“Right now, we’re just asking for prayers,” Parker told reporters Friday night. She urged residents to stay away from the scene.
In a statement, Shriner’s Hospital said the child had received care from the Philadelphia hospital and was being taken back to her home country of Mexico along with her mother on a contracted air ambulance when the crash happened.
The flight was headed to Missouri and was only in the air for a short period of time before something went wrong, according to Parker.
The company that operated the flight, Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, said in a statement there were four crew members on board.
“At this time, we cannot confirm any survivors,” the company said in the statement. “No names are being released at this time until family members have been notified. Our immediate concern is for the patient’s family, our personnel, their families and other victims that may have been hurt on the ground.”
The air ambulance was en route to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, according to Flight Radar24 data.
“I regret the death of six Mexicans in the plane crash in Philadelphia, United States,” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said in a statement Saturday. “The consular authorities are in permanent contact with the families; I have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to support them in whatever way is required. My solidarity with their loved ones and friends.”
A large fire burned in the wake of the crash, prompting a significant response.
“We heard a loud explosion and then saw the aftermath of flames and smoke,” eyewitness Jimmy Weiss told local ABC station WPVI near the scene.
He added, “It felt like the ground shook .. it was a loud boom. It was startling.”
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.
An NTSB investigator arrived at the scene Friday night with additional team members expected to arrive Saturday.
Temple University Hospital told ABC News it had received six patients hurt in the crash, although it was not clear if they were in the plane or people who were on the ground.
Three of those patients were treated and released and three remain hospitalized in fair condition, the hospital said.
Speaking at a follow-up press briefing Friday night, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said dozens of state troopers and other state personnel were on on hand to offer help and praised local responders and community members.
“We saw neighbor helping neighbor. We saw Pennsylvanians looking out for one another,” he said.
In a statement posted to social media platform Truth Social, President Donald Trump said: “So sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged. First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job. More to follow. God Bless you all.”
Immediately after the crash, the FAA issued a ground stop at Northeast Philadelphia Airport due to “an aircraft incident.”
The FAA had initially reported there were two people on board the aircraft but later corrected that report.
The investigation into the crash remains active and ongoing.
ABC News’ Ayesha Ali and Sam Sweeney contributed to this report.
(PHILADELPHIA) — A medical transport plane, carrying a child, her mother and four other people, crashed in Philadelphia Friday night near a busy mall, killing all aboard and resulting in an untold number of injuries on the ground.
The Learjet 55 crashed near the Roosevelt Mall in northeast Philadelphia around 6:30 p.m. after departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, according to authorities.
The exact number of the injured is not yet available, officials said.
“Many people on the ground – in parking lots, on streets, in cars and homes in the area – were injured; the number of injured is yet to be released but the information shared at this time reports that a number of people were transported to Temple University Hospital, Jeans Campus in the Northeast,” the office of Mayor Cherelle Parker said Saturday.
“Right now, we’re just asking for prayers,” Parker told reporters Friday night. She urged residents to stay away from the scene.
In a statement, Shriner’s Hospital said the child had received care from the Philadelphia hospital and was being taken back to her home country of Mexico along with her mother on a contracted air ambulance when the crash happened.
The company that operated the flight, Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, said in a statement there were four crew members on board.
“At this time, we cannot confirm any survivors,” the company said in the statement. “No names are being released at this time until family members have been notified. Our immediate concern is for the patient’s family, our personnel, their families and other victims that may have been hurt on the ground.”
The air ambulance was en route to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, according to Flight Radar24 data.
“I regret the death of six Mexicans in the plane crash in Philadelphia, United States,” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said in a statement Saturday. “The consular authorities are in permanent contact with the families; I have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to support them in whatever way is required. My solidarity with their loved ones and friends.”
A large fire burned in the wake of the crash, prompting a significant response.
“We heard a loud explosion and then saw the aftermath of flames and smoke,” eyewitness Jimmy Weiss told local ABC station WPVI near the scene.
He added, “It felt like the ground shook .. it was a loud boom. It was startling.”
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.
An NTSB investigator arrived at the scene Friday night with additional team members expected to arrive Saturday.
Temple University Hospital told ABC News it had received six patients hurt in the crash, although it was not clear if they were in the plane or people who were on the ground.
Three of those patients were treated and released and three remain hospitalized in fair condition, the hospital said.
Speaking at a follow-up press briefing Friday night, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said dozens of state troopers and other state personnel were on on hand to offer help and praised local responders and community members.
“We saw neighbor helping neighbor. We saw Pennsylvanians looking out for one another,” he said.
In a statement posted to social media platform Truth Social, President Donald Trump said: “So sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged. First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job. More to follow. God Bless you all.”
Immediately after the crash, the FAA issued a ground stop at Northeast Philadelphia Airport due to “an aircraft incident.”
The FAA had initially reported there were two people on board the aircraft but later corrected that report.
ABC News’ Ayesha Ali and Sam Sweeney contributed to this report.
Thomas Dickey, attorney for suspected shooter Luigi Mangione, on ABC News’ “Good Morning America” Wednesday, December 11.
(NEW YORK) — Luigi Mangione, the 26-year-old Ivy League graduate accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in front of a New York City hotel last week, has retained a private defense attorney in his Pennsylvania gun charges case.
Mangione was apprehended in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Monday following a dayslong manhunt. Police said he was found with multiple fake IDs, including a fake New Jersey ID matching the one that the suspect allegedly used to check into a hostel in New York City before the shooting, a 3D-printed pistol and a 3D-printed silencer.
He has been charged in Pennsylvania with carrying a gun without a license, forgery, falsely identifying himself to authorities and possessing “instruments of crime,” according to a criminal complaint.
Mangione plans to plead not guilty to the charges in Pennsylvania, his defense attorney, Thomas Dickey, told reporters on Tuesday.
Dickey said he anticipates Mangione would also plead not guilty to the second-degree murder charge he faces in New York in connection with Thompson’s death.
Has refrained from saying how he came to represent Mangione
The Altoona-based attorney has been making the press rounds since he was retained to represent Mangione, including ABC News’ Good Morning America and CNN.
But he could not confirm how he came to represent Mangione; he would only say he was retained Tuesday ahead of the suspect’s extradition hearing in Pennsylvania. He said he “of course” knew of the New York case but said, “I don’t follow a lot of things sometimes in news.”
The court denied Mangione bail during the hearing. Mangione plans to challenge his extradition to New York.
“He has constitutional rights and that’s what he’s doing” in challenging the interstate transfer, Dickey told reporters on Tuesday.
When asked how Mangione was feeling, the attorney brusquely said you can “use your common sense on that.” He later said that Mangione is “taking it as well as he can.”
The attorney told ABC News’ Good Morning America on Wednesday that anyone speculating on the case should take the potential evidence “in its entirety,” rather than take pieces of writing or other evidence “out of context.”
“People put out certain things, parts of different things,” he said. “I think any lawyer involved in this situation would want to see it all.”
“We’re looking forward to beginning our inquiry as to what evidence may or may not be out there,” he said.
Asked whether he would accept donations from members of the public seeking to fund his defense, Dickey said, “I don’t know.”
He told CNN that he probably wouldn’t.
“I just don’t feel comfortable about that,” he said. “It just doesn’t sit right with me, really.”
Asked about the outpouring of support for Mangione online, Dickey told reporters Tuesday, “People are entitled to their opinion.”
“If you’re an American, you believe in the American criminal justice system, you have to presume him to be innocent,” the attorney said. “And none of us would want anything other than that if that was us in their shoes. I’m glad that he has some support.”
Would consider representing suspect in New York murder case
Mangione could face additional charges in New York beyond second-degree murder, according to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
“As we learn more about motives and other things like that … there may be additional charges,” Bragg told ABC News on Wednesday.
Dickey told reporters Tuesday that if the opportunity presented itself to represent Mangione in the New York case, he “certainly would consider” it.
The attorney said he does not have a license to practice law in New York, but that “you can get admitted.”
“I’ve been doing this for 41 years, you can get admitted there,” he said, but added, “I don’t want to speculate about anything.”
Takes on cases ranging from capital murder to DUIs
Dickey is a lifelong resident of Blair County, home to Altoona, according to his bio on his law firm website.
He studied history and political science at Saint Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania, and earned his law degree from Ohio Northern University.
He opened his private practice in 1984. It takes on first-degree murder, DUI and state and federal drug cases, among others.
Dickey told reporters Tuesday he is “proud to say” that he is one of the few attorneys in Pennsylvania who is qualified to provide defense counsel in death penalty cases.
His decades-long career has included a 2009 double homicide in which he argued post-traumatic stress disorder as a defense for the defendant, an Iraqi War veteran.
“I argued to the jury in my opening [statement], I said I believe that the Iraq war came home that day,” Dickey told CNN following the trial.
The defendant was ultimately convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison after the jury couldn’t agree on the death penalty.
Asked if Mangione’s was the biggest case he’s been on, Dickey told reporters, “They’re all big.”
