New surveillance video shows Svetlana Dali, a 57-year-old woman accused of hiding on a Delta Airlines flight from New York to Paris last year, successfully going through airport security before boarding.
The video obtained by USA TODAY shows Dali, who appears to be wearing a black jacket, grey hoodie, blue jeans and carrying a brown bookbag on her back, walking throughout John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City on Nov. 26, 2024.
Dali, a U.S. permanent resident originally from Russia, is seen in the video going through a TSA screening machine and being patted down by an agent before bypassing gate attendants while walking with a large group of passengers.
“Delta agents, who were busy helping ticketed passengers board, did not stop her or ask her to present a boarding pass before she boarded the plane,” according to federal charging documents.
TSA spokesperson David Fitz previously told USA TODAY that the Dali was “physically screened without any prohibited items,” before she “bypassed two identity verification and boarding status stations, and boarded the aircraft” despite not having a boarding pass.
Dali was eventually arrested in December 2024 in Buffalo, New York, before she could get on a bus traveling to Canada. She was subsequently charged with knowingly stowing away abroad an aircraft without consent. She pleaded not guilty to the charges.
USA TODAY contacted Dali’s federal public defender on Wednesday but has not received a response.
When contacted by USA TODAY on April 23, the major airline emailed the same statement from December 2024, which says, “Our review affirms that Delta’s security infrastructure, as part of our Safety Management System framework, is sound and that deviation from standard procedures is the root cause of this event.”
“As nothing is of greater importance than safety and security, we will continue to work closely with our regulators, law enforcement and other relevant stakeholders,” the statement continued.
USA TODAY contacted the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey on Wednesday but did not receive an immediate response.
When Dali spoke to FBI officials after being returned to the U.S. by French law enforcement on Dec. 4, she admitted to not having a plane ticket and to intentionally evading TSA agents and Delta employees, according to charging documents. She also confirmed that the surveillance camera images were of her and that she knew that her actions were illegal.
Passengers noticed Dali hiding in the lavatory during the flight, and once the crew became aware of her presence, they notified French authorities, CNN reported.
Dali was initially turned away by a TSA agent after she was unable to show a boarding pass, but a few minutes later, she was able to get past the security checkpoint by “entering through a special lane for airline employees masked by a large Air Europa flight crew,” according to the charging documents.
A trial date for Dali has not been set, but she was ordered to remain in Philadelphia and submit to GPS monitoring, a mental health evaluation and surrender any travel documents, court records show.
Contributing: Gabe Hauari, Saman Shafiq, Taylor Ardrey and Max Hauptman/ USA TODAY
