An apparent Russian-speaking stowaway who flew from Denmark to Los Angeles without a passport, visa or plane ticket last month is facing a federal charge, according to court papers obtained Tuesday.
Sergey Ochigava arrived at Los Angeles International Airport on Nov. 4 on a Scandinavian Airlines flight from Copenhagen. However, immigration officers in Los Angeles determined that Ochigava was not listed as a passenger on the flight manifest, according to a criminal complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court on Nov. 6.
When questioned at the checkpoint, Ochigava gave "false and misleading" information about his travel to the United States, according to the document.
He was charged Nov. 16 with a single federal count of stowing away on an aircraft and pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on Dec. 5, court papers show. A jury trial was tentatively set for Dec. 26.
Ochigava, described as an economist, had apparently evaded security in Copenhagen. An affidavit filed with the criminal complaint states that a search of his bags found Russian identification cards and an Israeli identification card.
"Ochigava claimed he had not been sleeping for three days and did not understand what was going on," according to the affidavit. "Ochigava stated he might have had a plane ticket to come to the United States, but he was not sure ... When asked how he got through security in Copenhagen, Ochigava claimed he did not remember how he went through security without a ticket," the affidavit states.
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