Passenger Removed From Flight

A Frontier Airlines passenger who had a notebook with the words “suicide bomber” on it was taken into custody Wednesday and questioned for several hours before being released to his family, police said.

The passenger, identified only as a 36-year-old man from Santa Cruz County, got the attention of a fellow passenger after writing in a journal that had the words “suicide bomber” handwritten on the front, authorities from the San Jose Police Department and the FBI said.

He was also clutching a backpack in what the fellow passenger regarded as a suspicious manner.

The man was taken from Frontier Flight 169 from Denver after it taxied to a halt at Mineta San Jose International Airport, stopping just short of the gate. He was questioned by the FBI and San Jose police, who were in charge of the investigation, authorities said.

Police tested the man to see if he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs and are awaiting the results, said Sgt. Nick Muyo, a police spokesman.

A decision about whether to file charges probably will not be made for two weeks, Muyo said. Police confiscated the journal.

“It seemed like he was under the influence but that’s not been determined at this point,” said Patty Hansen, an assistant spokeswoman at the FBI.

The man did not threaten the crew or other passengers onboard, and was “very remorseful” after being taken into custody, Muyo said.

The plane, which had 132 passengers and a crew of five, was searched and nothing suspicious was found, said Joe Hodas, a spokesman for Denver-based Frontier.

The flight arrived from Denver about 10:10 a.m. San Jose was the final destination.