Cuban National Sentenced to Over Two Years for Assaulting Officers at Las Vegas Airport

Jhon Raúl Vizcaíno Ramírez, a Cuban national, was sentenced to over two years (33 months) in federal prison this Thursday for assaulting four officers while attempting to gain access to a restricted area at Las Vegas's Harry Reid International Airport with a boarding pass under another person's name.

Federal Judge Andrew P. Gordon also imposed three years of supervised release, as reported by the U.S. Department of Justice. Prosecutors had sought a 60-month sentence.

The incident occurred on November 3, 2025, when Vizcaíno Ramírez arrived at a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint with a boarding pass not in his name for a flight to Rochester, New York.

When asked for identification, he displayed a passport inside a plastic bag but refused to hand it over for verification. After the agent confiscated the boarding pass, Vizcaíno Ramírez struck him on the head and tore off his glasses.

The altercation escalated as additional officers tried to apprehend him. Federal authorities reported that Vizcaíno Ramírez attacked two TSA employees and two officers from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department who responded to the scene.

During the scuffle, he managed to grab a pen from one of the officers and attempted to use it as a weapon. One officer sustained injuries requiring surgical intervention.

In June, Vizcaíno Ramírez pled guilty to five federal charges: two counts of interfering with security personnel, two counts of assaulting and resisting officers, and one count of deceptive entry into a restricted airport area.

At the time of the incident, the Cuban national was on probation for a previous conviction of assault with a deadly weapon and had other violent crime records.

Additionally, he had entered the United States illegally from Mexico on October 27, 2022. The Border Patrol intercepted him near Yuma, Arizona, but released him due to overcrowding in detention facilities, allowing him to remain in the country without legal status, according to authorities.

Following his arrest for the airport incident, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a detainer against him. After serving his criminal sentence, he may be taken into ICE custody and face immigration proceedings.

"This defendant's violent actions directly threatened the safety of travelers and the dedicated personnel who work tirelessly to ensure the security of our nation's airspace," stated Sigal Chattah, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Nevada.

Chattah warned that assaults on TSA workers and law enforcement officers "will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of federal law."

TSA Administrator David P. Cummins emphasized that "attacks against them are unacceptable" and assured that the agency will continue collaborating with authorities to hold those who harm its employees accountable.