Evergreen Reporter

U.S. District Judge Harvey E. Schlesinger has sentenced Evan Sims, 41, of Rhode Island, to two years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for providing false information and making threats about an explosive on an airplane. Sims has been in custody since his arrest on December 6, 2023. The court also ordered Sims to pay $25,478 in restitution to Breeze Airways. Sims pled guilty on March 5, 2024.

According to court documents, Sims was traveling on a flight from Orlando, Florida to Providence, Rhode Island on December 5, 2023. While seated on the plane prior to takeoff, Sims began arguing with his travel companion. He expressed doubts about the airline and made remarks such as hoping the airplane did not “go down” and that they would be “gone with the wind.”

During boarding and the airline safety briefing, Sims commented to his travel companion about needing to use emergency doors and questioned the condition of the windows. He also queried the flight crew regarding an emergency life raft stored in the overhead compartment. These comments made both his travel companion and surrounding passengers uncomfortable.

As the flight began its initial ascent, Sims partially stood up and exclaimed he wanted to get off the plane. While airborne, he stated approximately twice that his travel companion had a bomb on board. Due to these repeated disturbances and escalating behavior, the flight was diverted to Jacksonville International Airport where bomb detection dogs searched the plane but found no bomb.

The case was investigated by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Jacksonville Aviation Authority Airport Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Washington.