Three Philadelphia Bound Passengers Arrested Following Forced Boarding and Confrontation Over Baggage Fees at Miami International Airport

Three women face charges of trespassing and battery after allegedly rushing onto a Frontier Airlines flight in Miami to avoid paying extra baggage fees.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 31, 2026, 9:05 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from People

Escalation at the Boarding Gate

A routine boarding process for Frontier Airlines flight F9-1204 transformed into a criminal investigation Sunday evening at Miami International Airport. According to arrest reports obtained from the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, a verbal altercation erupted at approximately 9:50 p.m. when an airline employee informed three women that they had exceeded their paid carry-on allowance. The employee instructed the trio to step out of line and pay the required fees for their additional bags, warning them that failure to comply would result in their removal from the flight.

Unauthorized Access to Restricted Areas

Rather than settling the baggage dispute, the suspects allegedly chose to bypass security protocols. Nafisa Dockery, 30, reportedly encouraged her companions, 26 year old Davana Cochran and 21 year old Dionjana Cochran, to ignore the employee's directives. Despite explicit warnings that law enforcement would be summoned, the group "rushed onto the aircraft," according to investigators. In doing so, they allegedly transited through a door clearly marked as a restricted area for authorized personnel only, effectively forcing their way onto the plane with invalid boarding passes.

Deboarding and Physical Resistance

The situation reached a critical point once the women were onboard the aircraft and refused to comply with deputies' orders to leave. Because the suspects "tensed their bodies and pulled their arms away" to avoid being handcuffed, airline officials were forced to deboard every passenger on the flight to allow law enforcement to safely carry out the arrests. During the ensuing struggle, Nafisa Dockery allegedly spat on a Frontier employee. Video of the incident, which has since circulated on social media, captured the women being escorted through the terminal by deputies amidst a chorus of remarks from frustrated fellow travelers.