How a faux pilot allegedly flew free for almost 5 years

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Prosecutors say a Canadian flight attendant used faux pilot credentials to safe airline journey advantages for years.

A former flight attendant pleaded responsible to wire fraud after posing as a industrial pilot to get a whole lot of free flights.

Dallas Pokornik, 34, of Toronto, Canada, obtained tickets reserved for pilots and different journey advantages from three airways between January 2020 and October 2024, in keeping with a plea settlement filed within the District of Hawaii on Aug. 6. He additionally “used and presented a false and (fictitious) identification badge, which falsely claimed that the defendant was a current employee of” a fourth airline.

Pokornik labored as a flight attendant for the fourth airline from July 2017 till October 2019 however was by no means a pilot, in keeping with the October 2025 indictment.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii stated in an Aug. 7 news release that Pokornik’s employer was a industrial airline in Canada, however didn’t title the provider or the three Pokornik obtained flights from. The latter three are primarily based within the U.S.

Attorneys listed for Pokornik didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.

“Travel security protocols help keep our citizens and visitors safe, and anyone who breaches those protocols should expect to be brought to justice,” Ken Sorenson, U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawaii, stated within the launch. “We thank our law enforcement partners at Homeland Security Investigations and abroad for helping us hold this fraudster accountable.”

Pokornik agreed to pay restitution to the airways as a part of the plea settlement and will serve as much as 20 years in jail, in keeping with the discharge. He additionally faces a effective of as a lot as $250,000 and a time period of supervised launch.

He is ready to be sentenced on Dec. 8.

Nathan Diller is a client journey reporter for USA TODAY primarily based in Nashville. You can attain him at ndiller@usatoday.com.