He Said He Had a Bomb at the Airport. Police Say It Was a Joke

By Jordan Reyes. Sep 6, 2026

A Security Question Got an Answer That Stopped the Trip

An American Airlines gate agent at Miami International Airport asked a passenger a standard question about dangerous items in his bag. According to deputies, the passenger answered that he had a bomb.

Yoel Guevara-Crespo, 33, later told authorities he had been joking. He did not board the flight. Instead, deputies arrested him on a felony false-bomb-report charge.

Deputies Say the Comment Came at the Gate

According to an arrest report cited by People and WPLG Local 10, Guevara-Crespo was preparing to board an American Airlines flight to Camaguey, Cuba, on Aug. 31. The gate agent asked whether he had lithium batteries or incendiary devices in his luggage.

Deputies say he replied, “No, but I have a bomb.” The agent told him he could not fly and that a supervisor would be contacted. Guevara-Crespo then said he was joking, according to the report.

A K-9 Search Found No Explosives

Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the gate and took Guevara-Crespo into custody without incident. A bomb-detection dog searched his luggage, and authorities said no explosive was found.

The absence of a bomb did not end the legal issue. Deputies charged him with making a false bomb report, which authorities described as a second-degree felony.

He Faced a Judge the Next Day

Guevara-Crespo was booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. A judge later found probable cause and set his bond at $2,500, according to local reporting.

American Airlines operations were allowed to return to normal after the arrest, the sheriff’s office said.

References: Man Arrested at Miami Airport After Claiming to Have a Bomb | Man flying to Cuba tells AA gate agent at MIA: No lithium batteries, ‘but I have a bomb,’ cops say