Former flight attendant gets 22 years for setting fire on jet

<p>A former flight attendant accused of setting a fire in an aircraft lavatory was sentenced Thursday to more than 22 years in prison after being convicted of damaging an aircraft with fire and other charges.</p><p>Turhan Jamar Lamons, 26, of Morrow, Ga., was working as the sole attendant on a Comair flight from Atlanta to Huntsville, Ala., in 2003 when he set the fire, said U.S. Attorney David E. Nahmias.</p><p>When Lamons reported smoke in the lavatory, the jet was forced to make an emergency landing about 20 minutes after takeoff, Nahmias said. Authorities concluded that the fire was set and determined Lamons was the only person who entered the lavatory.</p><p>"Lamons was a real threat to the safety of civil aviation," Nahmias said Thursday. "The Department of Justice will continue to prosecute with vigor and determination all those whose actions threaten the safety of the flying public."</p><p>The charges against Lamons stemmed from two incidents: The 2003 case and another in 2001.</p><p>In the earlier incident, Lamons was accused of calling AirTran Airways, where he was then working, a week after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 and saying that everyone on board his Atlanta to Boston flight was "going to die." The plan was evacuated and searched.</p><p>Lamons was convicted in March 2005 of"conveyance of false information concerning the destruction of an aircraft," in connection with the 2001 case. He was convicted last May of three fire-related charges stemming from the 2003 case.</p><p>Lamons was sentenced to 22 years, seven months in prison and to pay restitution of $43,703.</p>