This article from NYTimes.com has been sent to you by psa188@juno.com. Passenger Seized in Midflight Is Returned to U.S. February 9, 2002 By DANA CANEDY MIAMI, Feb. 8 - A Uruguayan passenger who tried to break down the cockpit door during a United Airlines flight from Miami to Buenos Aires on Thursday appeared in court here today and told a federal magistrate that he understood the charge against him. The 29-year-old man, Pablo Moreira Mosca, faces a felony charge of interfering with a flight crew, in an incident that began midway through United Flight 855, which carried 157 people. Mr. Moreira, an F.B.I. affidavit said, paced the aisles of the jetliner and entered its first-class section several times before a member of the flight crew asked him to take his seat, in coach. Instead, he rammed his shoulder into the cockpit door at least six times, the affidavit said. He was subdued by crew members, among them a co-pilot who hit him on the head with a small ax. Mr. Moreira, escorted by two Argentine police officers and two agents of the United States Diplomatic Security Service, arrived back in Miami from Buenos Aires early this morning. He appeared in court this afternoon and was told his rights by Magistrate Judge Peter R. Palermo. When the magistrate explained the charge and asked him whether he understood it, he briefly discussed the question with his two lawyers and then answered yes. Speaking to reporters afterward, one of the lawyers, Allan Sullivan, said: "It is important for you to know that our client is not a terrorist. He has no affiliation or association to any terrorist organization. The circumstances that brought him here are quite unfortunate." Mr. Sullivan did not discuss Mr. Moreira's motives, either in court or after the hearing. The prosecution filed a motion asking that Mr. Moreira be kept in detention pending trial. The magistrate scheduled a hearing on the motion for Tuesday. New York-Bound Plane Diverted CLEVELAND, Feb. 8 (AP) - A small jet bound for New York from Indianapolis with 21 people aboard was diverted to Cleveland today because, officials said, a passenger became verbally abusive when told to put out a cigarette. The passenger, whose name was not disclosed, is a 35-year-old Frenchman with a history of mental problems, said Natalia Martinovic, a spokeswoman for Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. "He mentioned the World Trade Center on the flight," she said. "We don't know in what context it was used." A flight attendant and an off-duty New York police officer subdued the man, who was taken to a hospital here for a psychiatric evaluation. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/09/national/09MIAM.html?ex=1014286573&ei=1&en=d8ebbe12c2af3a51 HOW TO ADVERTISE --------------------------------- For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters or other creative advertising opportunities with The New York Times on the Web, please contact Alyson Racer at alyson@nytimes.com or visit our online media kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo For general information about NYTimes.com, write to help@nytimes.com. Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company