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The woman who flew as a stowaway on a Delta Air Lines flight from New York in Paris earlier this week remains in France after causing disruption on a flight back to the United States, according to two law enforcement sources.
The woman was removed from a potential return flight before takeoff in Paris on Saturday, officials told CNN.
Her flight back to the US has yet to be rescheduled, the sources said.
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Before getting on the plane, the woman was in a waiting area at Charles de Gaulle airport – known as ZAPI – for people awaiting deportation, as she does not meet the requirements to enter Europe, CNN previously reported.
Investigators are trying to determine how the woman passed through multiple security checkpoints at New York’s JFK International Airport and boarded a flight to Paris, apparently hiding in the plane’s bathrooms during the flight.
The stowaway did not have a boarding pass, but went through security and bypassed two identity and boarding status checks to board the Delta Air Lines plane, according to the Transportation Security Administration.
Tuesday’s incident happened on one of the busiest days of the year. Nearly 2.7 million passengers traveled on planes that day, ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, according to TSA data.
The stowaway was not carrying any prohibited items, according to a TSA spokesperson.
Delta said it is cooperating with police and conducting its own investigation.
“Nothing is more important than the issue of safety and security,” a Delta spokesperson said in a statement.
“That’s why Delta is conducting an extensive investigation into what may have happened and will work with other aviation stakeholders and law enforcement to that end.”
CNN has reached out to the FBI and Customs and Border Protection for more information.
The stowaway is a woman between 55 and 60 years old and has a Russian passport, according to an airport official in Paris.
Once the woman is sent back to the U.S., the TSA could issue a civil penalty and New York authorities could arrest her, although they are not currently involved, a federal official familiar with the investigation told CNN. The TSA is conducting its own investigation into the incident, the official noted.
New York real estate broker Rob Jackson was on the Delta flight when the stowaway was discovered and told CNN that passengers were told to remain seated after landing so police could board the plane.
“I didn’t actually see the person in question. She apparently hid in the toilet all the way in the back of the plane when we took off from JFK,” Jackson said.
“The first notice to the passengers that there was a problem was when we parked at the gate and they told us all to remain seated as the French police were going to board the plane to deal with a ‘serious security issue’.”
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