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Death on plane leaves many questions
NEW YORK (AP) -- Alexander Siess was on a recent flight from Mexico City to Paris when, authorities say, he became so unruly the pilot made an emergency landing at Kennedy International Airport. Minutes after the 767 jet touched down, the 25-year-old Austrian was dead. The circumstances of the little-noticed death last weekend -- which may have involved alcohol and a violent struggle -- remain murky. An autopsy on Siess was inconclusive; toxicology and other tests were pending. "We've been told it's an open investigation and we should wait for the outcome," said Gregor Csorsz, spokesman for the Austrian consulate in Manhattan, which notified Siess' parents about his death. Csorsz said Siess was a student from St. Anton, but knew nothing else about his background. Calls to the parents' home in Austria on Friday went unanswered. Another Austrian official in New York, Sigurd Pacher, said that the victim's brother traveled to the city, but was too upset to talk. "He's still trying to cope with what happened," said Pacher, who did not give the brother's name. Contacted this week, authorities and airline officials offered only fragmented accounts of what happened October 11 on AeroMexico Flight 5. Sometime after departing Mexico City, the pilot sought permission to land in New York "for the safety of the passengers and the plane," AeroMexico spokesman Mario Maraboto said. Siess, who apparently was traveling alone and toting a bottle of whiskey, grew drunk and belligerent, Maraboto said. A male flight attendant confined him to his seat while the plane landed, the spokesman added. Three U.S. law enforcement officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is continuing, described a more dire situation. They said they were told Siess reportedly "freaked out" and "charged the cockpit." As many as 12 other passengers joined in a struggle to subdue him, then tied him up with belts and stockings, the officials said. One of the law enforcement officials said a physician on the flight may have injected Siess with a sedative as well -- part of an initial report that prompted the FBI and other federal agents to respond to Kennedy. The Port Authority Police Department, which took over the ongoing investigation, declined comment on the reports. By the time the plane reached the gate, Siess was in cardiac arrest, Port Authority police said. An ambulance took him to Jamaica Hospital, where he was pronounced dead about 9 p.m. Authorities grounded the plane long enough to question the crew and passengers. Then, shortly after 1 a.m., the plane was allowed to take off again for Paris. On Friday, Siess's body sat in a Queens morgue, unclaimed. Copyright 2003 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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