Passenger says he made bomb threat on flight to escape cartel members waiting to torture and kill him in Seattle, documents say

A passenger aboard an Alaska Airlines flight from Atlanta to Seattle Wednesday is accused of making a bomb threat that caused pilots to land the plane in Spokane, Washington.

Documents filed in U.S. District Court said Brandon Scott, 38, claimed he made the threat because members or a “powerful cartel” were under orders to kill him when he arrived in Seattle, CBS affiliate KIRO-TV reported. Scott faces a false information and hoaxes charge.

After the plane took off Wednesday afternoon, Scott handed a flight attendant a note saying he had homemade explosives in his carry-on and a detonator on him, the court documents alleged.

“This is not a joke,” the note read. “Several pounds of homemade explosives are in my carry on bag. I have a detonator with me. Handle this matter carefully and exactly how I say, otherwise I will detonate the explosives and kill everyone on board.”

Scott’s note demanded the plane be rerouted to “any other airport.” The note instructed the flight attendant to alert the pilot and air traffic controllers but keep the threat from others aboard the plane, the documents said.

Read more: CBS News