A Nigerian-American has been sentenced to time served and one year of supervised release after pleading guilty to using an expired boarding pass with someone else's name to get a free ride on a Los Angeles-bound flight from New York.
Olajide Oluwaseun Noibi pleaded guilty in August and has spent nearly five months in jail since his June 29 arrest at Los Angeles International Airport. He was expected to be released Monday.
The 24-year-old, who has dual U.S. and Nigerian citizenship, had faced up to five years in prison.
Noibi was caught June 24 using an outdated boarding pass with someone else's name to get on a Virgin America flight from JFK Airport to LAX. The crew became suspicious of Noibi during the flight and was later questioned on the ground in Los Angeles but released.
Five days later, he tried to board a Delta flight to Atlanta but was detained by authorities, who found about 15 boarding passes issued to other people his possession.
Noibi's arrest triggered national headlines because of the ease with which he apparently got around several layers of airport security.
In sentencing Noibi on Monday, U.S. District Judge Manuel Real agreed with prosecutors that the time he has already spent behind bars was sufficient punishment.
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