A Qatari diplomat caused a scare on a United States flight Wednesday after sneaking a cigarette in the airplane's bathroom and then joking about terrorism.
Diplomat Mohammed al-Madadi was on his way from Washington to Denver when he decided to smoke despite strict rules prohibiting smoking during the flight. He hid in the bathroom in order to conceal his activity.
As he left the bathroom, federal air marshals noticed the smell of smoke and asked him to explain. Madadi allegedly joked that he had been attempting to set fire to his shoes – a reference to 2001 “shoe bomber” Richard Reid, a terrorist who attempted to detonate explosives that had been hidden in his shoes during a flight.
Marshals restrained Madadi, and military jets were scrambled. The jets accompanied the plane until it had landed, at which point he was taken for questioning.
Madadi was released later in the day, and returned to Washington. US officials who spoke to the Associated Press said Madadi apparently had no intention to cause harm to the plane or its passengers, and indicated that they do not believe he will be charged with a crime.